A Shropshire woman who was left with spinal injuries after two car accidents has completed a relay swim across the English Channel.

Methodist minister Eleanor Reddington, 56, from Bishop’s Castle, who walks with the aid of crutches, was one of a team of six able-bodied and disabled people to completed the challenge at about 3.15pm yesterday.

The group set off from Dover at about midnight on Monday and completed the crossing in 14 hours and 27 minutes.

The team decided to swim the channel to celebrate the 10th anniversary of the Aspire Channel Swim, which challenges participants to swim 22 miles in a swimming pool over a three-month period. They were aiming to raise £10,000 for the charity.

Eleanor said: “It was very choppy. It took longer than we anticipated because the currents diverted us. We ended up doing a longer route than we had planned. We are all absolutely shattered because we left at midnight and not many of us have had much sleep, but we are all elated as well.”

Eleanor has raised more than £7,000 for Aspire by taking part in the swim challenge in previous years. As well as swimming the channel this year, she is also taking part in the indoor challenge for the seventh time and hopes to raise more than £10,000.

She added: “I have swum more than 132 miles so far for Aspire, I always try and make it a bit more challenging each time, last year I managed 18 miles in one go which I was very happy with.”