Three colleagues who work for the National Trust have set off on a week-long walk around Dartmoor to raise money for a Changing Places toilet to allow severely disabled people to enjoy the moor.

Paula Clarke and her colleagues Heather Kay and Helen Yazhekov strode away from Castle Drogo near Okehampton this morning (Friday,September 20) to walk all 108 miles of the Dartmoor Way.

Their adventure will raise funds towards Paula's quest to install a Changing Places toilet on Dartmoor.

The toilets, which cost £40,000 just for the equipment alone, represent "a real gamechanger" for people with severe disabilities and their families.

Paula's motivation for the walk is her best friend Emma Bray, who has sadly been diagnosed with motor neurone disease (MND) at the age of just 41.

This cruel disease affects the brain and nerves and debilitates the body, getting worse over time.

“It was the worst possible news we could have had, but Emma is a real star and wants to be positive, so what we are doing is keeping positive and trying to make it better for other people,” said Paula.

"Changing Places toilets are a real gamechanger. They are bigger and they have got hoists for people to get in and out of the toilet safely.

"Emma loves Dartmoor, she loves being in nature and the countryside but without the ability to go to the toilet safely, it isn't going to be possible.

"Every penny we raise from the walk will go towards building a Changing Places toilet on Dartmoor."

Emma, who lives in Barnstaple, will join the walkers on the wheelchair-friendly stretch alone the Granite Way next Thursday (September 26).

The walk is a loop around the moor, which passes through West Devon and starts and finishes at Castle Drogo.

"We chose to start at Castle Drogo as it is on the Dartmoor Way route,” said Paula. “Along that route there isn't a single Changing Places toilet for people with complex needs, so it seemed symbolic in a way. We hope the walk will be fun and challenging at the same time.

"I was originally going to do it on my own, then I mentioned it to my lovely friends and colleagues and two of them said they would do the whole thing with me, which is just amazing. All the rest are coming in teams to walk with us each day."

Kind people are putting them up along the route, with The Dolphin in Bovey Tracey offering a room for the three of them, while on another night they will bunk down in a National Trust barn.

"One or our garden team lives in Tavistock, so she is putting us up and one of our colleagues has a farm in South Zeal so we are going to camp in her field on the last night and have a party. I've been so moved by the kindness of people, everyone wants to be involved. It has definitely been a massive team effort."

She suggests that Castle Drogo would be a good place to site the toilet. She is seeking other funding to add to the sponsorship money from the walk.

“Castle Drogo has lots of visitors each year and it is a gateway onto the moor. If they had this facility there it would help people plan their walks out onto the moor and hopefully it would inspire other places to install a Changing Places toilet too."

Donations can be made at www.justgiving.com/team/dartmoorwaychallenge