A fundraising campaign has been launched to mark the 40th anniversary of the Musselburgh-based Bridges Project for young people.

Called “40 for 40”, it will run for 40 days, from June 3 to July 12.

Funds raised will go to the Bridges Project, in Bogpark Road, which is a charity that works with young people in East Lothian and Midlothian. It helps them take their next steps in life, like getting back into school, finding a job or an apprenticeship, or getting the help they need.

Simen Holm, fundraising and communications manager at the Bridges Project, said: “During those 40 days, we encourage members of the public to celebrate our 40th birthday by taking on a fundraising challenge involving 40 repetitions of something.

This could be doing 40 laps in the swimming pool, running 40 miles in 40 days, playing 40 games of FIFA or anything else involving 40.”

Funds can be raised by setting up a page on JustGiving and selecting Bridges Project as the charity to raise funds for.

This page can then be used to take donations and provide supporters with updates on the fundraiser’s activity of choice.

Even though the campaign itself will last for 40 days, people will still be able to raise funds for the project up until its birthday, on November 18.

Simen explained: “We have launched the campaign, not only because we wanted to invite the local community to join us in celebrating our 40th birthday by doing something fun, but also to help us ensure that we will be able to continue to support young people in East Lothian and Midlothian in the future.

“The challenges of the last few years have illustrated how vital our work is in enabling young people to overcome challenges and reach their full potential.

“As of April 1, 146 young people were on the waiting list to access our services, with many having to wait for several months – and even up to a year – before they will be able to access support.

“The demand for our services has never been bigger and it is therefore more important than ever to make sure that we will not only be able to sustain our current services but also to increase our capacity so that we can help more young people who need it; 40 for 40 will be important in making that happen.”

He added: “We hope 40 for 40 will be a fun activity that participants will enjoy and that they will also feel a sense of achievement by completing whatever challenge they set for themselves.

“Hopefully it can also encourage people to do challenges that take them out in the local community and improve their physical and mental health.

“We hope it will also be a rewarding activity to take part in, as any participant can rest assured that every single penny they raise will go towards our work of supporting vulnerable and disadvantaged young people.”