WATCH: Driving instructors unite to raise hundreds for Children in Need

A team of driving instructors from Portsmouth and the surrounding area came together for the Big Learner Relayin aid of Children in Need.

Led by a car in which a student was receiving a lesson, the convoy embarked on a sponsored drive from Portsdown Hill to Horsham – where another group would begin another leg.

Leading, sporting a Big Learner relay top-box, was instructor Nick Pink – who runs a driving school in Waterlooville.

He said: ‘The drive was absolutely great. My student enjoyed it so much she agreed to do an additional leg.

‘It’s just great that I was invited to be a lead car and join in and meet the other driving instructors.

‘It’s fantastic doing what I enjoy most to help raise money.’

Each of the cars in the convoy was decorated with multi-coloured Children in Need-themed sponsored stickers – each representing a cash donation.

In total, the effort raised more than £750, forming part of a national total exceeding £47,000.

When the Portsmouth team arrived in Horsham the top-box was passed on to a neighbouring instructor, who would play a part in driving it to the finish line in Liverpool – marking 3,000 miles of the Big Learner Relay.

Ahead of the initiative’s 2018 return, Mr Pink said: ‘I’m looking forward to supporting the Big Learner Relay again.

‘However, I would like to pass the lead-car baton over to another driving instructor from the Southern Driving Instructor Association.’

Since it started in 2014, the Big Learner Relay has raised more than £250,000 for Children in Need.

To keep up with coverage of the cause in the area as it returns today, visit portsmouth.co.uk and purchase a copy of Saturday’s edition of The News.