MORE than 50 police officers are to face the toughest beat of their careers in a 630-mile marathon walk to raise money to help a seriously injured colleague.

Uniformed officers and detectives from stations in the Basildon and Thurrock districts, will be walking in relays to complete the gruelling South West Coast Path around Somerset, Devon, Cornwall and Dorset.

Each team will walk about 100 miles in a week on pathways that rise and fall over some of the highest and most spectacular cliffs in Britain.

The aim of the sponsored walk is to raise more than £10,000 for Pitsea police officer Arron Williams, 25 - who suffered serious neck injuries playing rugby in September - and also Stoke Mandeville Hospital where he has been treated.

Inspector David Miller has organised the walk and his target is to raise funds towards buying a specialist wheelchair for Pc Williams.

"Arron suffered a broken neck in a rugby match and currently has very limited movement from the neck down," said Inspector Miller.

"He will require intensive physiotherapy and care for a considerable period.

"When I started thinking about a fund-raising event I found out about the South West Coast Path but realised it was a bit too much for me to tackle on my own, so I asked colleagues if they would like to be involved.

"The response was absolutely remarkable and we now have 55 volunteers who are prepared to give up their rest days and annual leave to spend more than a week on the walk.

"It is a big challenge for people who might not be regular walkers and 20 miles a day will be tough going over some of the higher parts of the route. Experts who know the path have calculated that the inclines, when added together, are more than three times the height of Mount Everest (29,035ft) over the 630 miles.

"I think it will be relatively easy for everyone on the walk to obtain sponsorship of £200, which means we will raise £10,000. But I suspect we will raise significantly more and will be able to raise the bulk of the £15,000 needed for Arron's wheelchair. A percentage of the money raised will go to Stoke Mandeville Hospital where Arron has received such superb care."

The walk will take six weeks from May 3 to mid-June and starts at Minehead, Somerset. From there teams will walk in relays around the coastline of Devon and Cornwall and finish at Poole Harbour, Dorset.

The teams consist of officers from the management team at Basildon police station, detectives from Basildon CID, officers from Laindon Road Policing Unit, Thurrock CID, the South West Division Tactical Team as well as two teams of Arron's colleagues from Pitsea police station.

The officers, who plan to stay overnight on campsites, are now seeking sponsorship from colleagues and friends and organisers also hope to obtain sponsorship from camping and outdoor pursuits shops and rambling organisations.