A wannabe physiotherapist tightly gripped her walking poles as she tackled three of the country’s biggest mountains.

Abbiher Banfield, a Year 13 student at Harrow High School, swapped exercise books for walking boots last weekend as she took on the three peaks challenge for charity.

The Three Peaks Challenge involves climbing the three highest peaks in England, Wales and Scotland – Snowden, Scafell Pike and Ben Nevis - often within 24 hours.

After her father instilled the climbing bug into her during holidays to the Lake District, she said she had been thinking of climbing Snowden before seeing a sign in a shop window in Wales about the challenge.

Joining a team of six others including one of her dad’s friends, Abbi managed to complete the trek in 21 hours and 40 minutes including ten hours of driving between the peaks.

She said: “The challenge itself didn’t seem that big because once you did once mountain you were in the car then for a few hours, it took ages.

“Once you got closer to each peak in the car though you did get nervous. We got to Snowden at 5am after driving all night so I really didn’t want to climb that one.

“My dad really wanted to do it with me but wasn’t fit enough. He drove us to Scotland and climbed the first mountain, but then met us in Wales after.

“I did it with his friend who also climbs, his whole life is mountains – he’s quite rustic.”

Rallying around friends, family members and teachers at her school, the 17-year-old A-level student managed to pull together more than £300 for her chosen charity the Willow Foundation.

Affiliated with the High School, the Foundation aims to support seriously ill 16 to 40-year-olds by providing “Special Days” out.

Abbi said: “I thought if I was going to do it, I may as well help raise money for a charity as well.

“Everyone here knows about the Foundation as the school has done events for it before, and they do great things like the special outings, so it means something to me for that reason.”