Save the date – 25th May is HD5K Day!

The sun is shining, the birds are singing, the blossom is out and that can only mean one thing! HD5K is the highlight of our fundraising year at Hayes Davidson, and we know it is for many of you too. There is nothing quite like the sight of over a hundred architects, developers and designers racing 5k around London’s Hyde Park on a warm spring evening in our annual charity run to raise funds for the Motor Neurone Disease Association.

 

Our founder Alan Davidson was diagnosed with Motor Neurone disease in 2012 aged just 52. Alan set up The Alan Davidson Foundation, which co-ordinates fundraising for HD5K but also match-funds everything that is raised by the runners. Our inaugural run in May 2018 was attended by Alan, who sadly died later that year.

 

We were devastated by Alan’s loss. Continuing the race that he helped set up was one of the ways we came together as a studio and as an industry, to both remember him and create a meaningful legacy from his life and passions. Since 2018 we have, together, raised over £250,000 to support the work of the MND Association. We’ve also made some great memories and had a lot of fun.

 

We’ve been surprised and delighted by the support that the event has had since it started. Even during the pandemic when we couldn’t physically meet, our virtual run was a great success, with people running on their own and sharing their photos and experiences on social media. This was really touching and captured the heart and soul of the event. 

 

We do, of course, celebrate the fastest runners and the biggest fundraisers, with prizes donated by our wonderful sponsors, but HD5K really is about participating – coming together as an industry around a spirited endeavour to test yourself, have some fun and help raise essential funding and awareness in the fight against MND.

 

It’s wonderful to see so many friends of the studio come together and raise funds this way. This year our runners will start and finish at the bandstand in Hyde Park, passing by the edge of the beautiful Serpentine Lake. And as always we will be coming back to our studio afterwards to celebrate together for the awards presentation, along with food, drinks and music!

 

Places are limited but it’s not too late to register if you’d like to take part. We really value your support and generosity – now more than ever - and hope to see some of you on the 25th May. Please click here to register your interest or get in touch directly at hd5k@hayesdavidson.com. And you can enjoy highlights of last year's event here.

  

The MND Association does amazing work, supporting care and research into a complex, brutal and currently still incurable disease. Raising funding and awareness is essential to help support sufferers and their families, and to continue to fund research. In 2022 the charity was able to provide 2,050 support grants and 32 new research grants. It has also been able to provide communication equipment and voice banking technology to help sufferers stay connected and independent for as long as possible. The MND Association also runs a helpline, last year responding to over 9000 calls, and a Benefits service which has helped people access over £2.2 million of unclaimed benefits.

 

The fundraising page for the HD5K 2023 can be found here.