A PARALYSED war veteran has passed through Warrington as he continues his epic challenge in aid of a cause close to his heart.

In 2010, while serving in Afghanistan, Mark Harding was shot through the neck, shattering his C5 and C6 spinal segments and resulting in him becoming paralysed from the neck down.

Despite being told multiple times that he would never walk again, Mark slowly started to regain some movement, and now he is taking on a mammoth challenge to walk the length of the UK.

Being billed as the Cumbrian Captain Tom, Mark is walking almost 1,000 miles from John O’Groats to Land’s End to raise funds for bereaved military children’s charity Scotty’s Little Soldiers.

@markprojectbelief Day 46 of Big Miles for Little smiles Warrington - Weaverham One of the main issues with having a rest day? Starting back up again. It’s hard my legs, they don’t want to do it and the didn’t heat didnt help today. But then I remember the whole reason I’m doing this, it’s not for me, It’s for Scotty’s children. Please go have a look, why I keep putting another and see why I am doing this epic walk/challenge, they’re such an amazing charity to support @Sc@Scotty’s Little Soldiersr check out my social medias for more info (Mark Harding/Project belief) If you can, please donate to 👇🏼 https://www.justgiving.com/crowdfunding/bigmilesforlittlesmiles #Ni#Nilfliski#bigmilesforlittlesmileso#johnogroatstolandsendc#scottyslittlesoldiersa#MarkHardingu#sunshinen#englandk#uke#fewmoremilesinthebage#BeautifulPlacesr#TravelMemoriest#StunningViewsn#IncredibleViewsu#justkeepwalkingo#followmyjourneye#determinationr#armymeansfamilyn#unstoppablen#incredibleviewsh#charitya#cantstopmenowe#veterano#woundedwarriorr#projectbeliefe#mentalhealthmattersu#fundraiser ♬ Good Vibes (Instrumental) - Ellen Once Again

He recently passed through Warrington, making his way from Northwich and on towards Wigan.

Scotty’s Little Soldiers supports hundreds of children and young people who have experienced the death of a parent who served in the British Armed Forces.

Before starting the challenge, Mark said: “As a result of nerve damage from being shot through the neck, I cannot have children now.

“For me, this is a way of helping everyone else’s kids. It is a way for me to have a really positive impact on children’s lives.”

@markprojectbelief Day 45 of Big Miles for Little smiles Wigan - Warrington Another 12 miles done today, so that is 479 miles in total now. I had the pleasure of being joined by Councillor Terry Maguire (who makes a cameo), Stuart Green (thank you for the amazing Instagram post/support) , Roger Martin (thanks for joining me again), and some of the residents of Newton, le Willows. Again, absolutely blown away. It’s really lovely seeing people and spreading the word of Scottys, please, everyone keep spreading the word you’ve been awesome so far every pound that goes towards this makes a difference. It’s a well needed rest/adminday for me tomorrow, but my feet will be back on the pavement on Tuesday. Please go have a look in to Scotty’s and see why I am doing this epic walk/challenge, they’re such an amazing charity to support @Scotty’s Little Soldiers or check out my social medias for more info (Mark Harding/Project belief) If you can, please donate to 👇🏼 https://www.justgiving.com/crowdfunding/bigmilesforlittlesmiles #Nilflisk #bigmilesforlittlesmiles #johnogroatstolandsend #scottyslittlesoldiers #MarkHarding #sunshine #england #uk #fewmoremilesinthebag #BeautifulPlaces #TravelMemories #StunningViews #IncredibleViews #justkeepwalking #followmyjourney #determination #armymeansfamily #unstoppable #incredibleviews #charity #cantstopmenow #veteran #woundedwarrior #projectbelief #mentalhealthmatters #fundraiser ♬ Emotional Love - Azwar

Mark has already walked the entire length of Scotland, passed his hometown of Carlisle, then travelled through Penrith, Lancaster and lots of towns and villages in between.

Scotty’s Little Soldiers is a tri-service charity dedicated to supporting children and young people aged up to 25 who have experienced the death of a parent who served in the British Armed Forces.

Charity founder Nikki Scott added: “What Mark is doing is absolutely incredible. We are so honoured that he has chosen to support Scotty’s with this huge challenge.

“We are all behind Mark and love hearing how he is doing. We are also very grateful to everyone who is supporting Mark along the way.”