Two hardy souls will undertake a mammoth fundraising trip from Land’s End to John O’Groats and back - travelling only by bus.

Bus enthusiasts Alan Moore, 54, from Romford, and Richard Stedall, 39, from Devon, spent two years meticulously planning the route, which should take them two weeks to complete.

All the money will go to Oxfam and in memory of Richard’s sister Heather Stedall who died suddenly, aged just 30, in 2009.

Alan, a systems analyst, said: “I’ve had an interest in buses since I was at school; I take pictures of them and have been all over the world to see them. So this fundriaser seemed like the perfect way to combine something that I love with a good cause.”

The duo have been promised free travel by most of the larger bus companies on the route.

And along the journey friends and families will hop on board to lend their support and help raise more money.

The journey will take the travellers up the west side of England into south west Scotland.

A game of hopscotch up the Western Isles on the connecting buses and ferries will eventually see the team arrive in Durness in the far north west of Scotland.

A run along the north coast using the twice-a-month bus service will transport them to the half-way point of their journey at John O’Groats.

The pair will then make their way back, heading south via Inverness, Aberdeen and Edinburgh, going over the border back into England and eventually reach the Medway Towns in Kent by the end of day 13.

They will continue to travel along the south coast until they reach Land’s End on day 16 - Saturday 30 July - before continuing onto Richard’s home in West Devon to finally finish the trip.

They hope to raise �5,000, which will go to school building projects in Mali, in Africa.

To sponsor them go to www.giftsforheather.com