An intrepid gardener will climb Mount Kilimanjaro for a mental health charity in honour of her father.

Giselle Fox, who lives in Finchley, has already raised over £1,700 in sponsorship for Mind.

The 34-year-old was inspired to support them because they helped her father through many of his long term troubles with mental health.

She said: “Mind is an amazing charity. It helps connect people suffering with mental health to the services they need. It cuts down your research time because the amount of different things out there is so overwhelming.”

“My dad has struggled with mental health his whole life and Mind helped him find the help he needed to cope with what he was going through.

“He was really bad a few years ago and Mind was there. When he moved away it was frustrating finding new services that suited him like the ones at home did, but Mind helped him reach out to charities and support groups.”

Gardener Giselle, who lives in Gruneisen Road, has also struggled with mental health, facing depression and anxiety as a young adult.

She said: “It was an intensive situation with my dad, but at the same time I had to come to terms with the fact that sometimes it’s just brain chemistry, it’s something you have to live with and nothing you can control.

“I’ve learned what relaxes me and how to stay calm. You learn to live with it that way, and by finding the right support in friends, family and services. Mental health can be very alienating and it’s ok to turn to the people around you for help.

“Mind taught me that lesson by showing us how we could help my dad when he couldn’t help himself.”

Despite having mild asthma, which can make breathing difficult, Giselle is confident that she will be able to cope with the thin air as she climbs the mountain.

She said: “My job keeps me pretty active and I’m generally a fit person so I think with a little bit of altitude training, which you can find in London, I should be ok. Breathing is my only real trepidation.

“Generally I’m the kind of person who does something first then worries about it later.”

As well as raising money online, Giselle has arranged an all-day fundraising event in her own back garden that anyone can attend on Saturday 25 June.

She said: “It’s an all-singing, all-dancing 50s-style tea party. There’ll be cake and drink as well as a singalong screening of Grease and music into the night. Tickets are only £5 and everyone is welcome.”