Farnham's hospice wants teams of five to walk on hot embers at Farnborough Business Park on 4 February, raising £1,000 each. Updated November 2026.

Phyllis Tuckwell, the hospice on Waverley Lane in Farnham, is looking for teams of five to walk barefoot across a lane of red-hot embers on Thursday 4 February 2027 at Farnborough Business Park, with each team asked to raise £1,000 for its care.

The walk is run for the charity by the firewalk instructors Time4Change. Walkers arrive at 4pm and must sit through a training session before anyone goes near the fire at 5.30pm, according to the event page.

“Whether you’re a team of work colleagues, gym buddies or old school friends, sign up together and get ready to break through the limits that were stopping you,” the charity said in its release. “Believe in each other, cheer each other on, and achieve this incredible feat together.”

What happens on the night

The charity’s timetable:

  • 4pm: arrival and registration
  • 4.30pm: mandatory firewalk seminar
  • 5.30pm: the firewalk starts
  • 6.30pm: finish

The release describes embers “reaching 800°C”. The organisers’ FAQ is more precise: pine, ash and oak are burnt down to a smooth path of embers 5 to 6 metres long and just under a metre wide. The fire passes 660°C while it burns down, and the lane is between 200°C and 315°C by the time people walk on it.

A supporter in an I'm supporting Phyllis Tuckwell Hospice Care T-shirt watches a lit fire lane at dusk, with onlookers behind a barrier
A supporter in a Phyllis Tuckwell T-shirt watches the fire lane burn. Photo: supplied by Phyllis Tuckwell

“Firewalking isn’t just about the walk itself, it’s about building confidence and self-belief that will last a lifetime, and the training session will teach you exactly that,” the hospice said.

According to the FAQ, there is no trick: no special materials, no hypnosis. A Time4Change instructor crosses the lane first to check it meets their safety criteria, at least two of their team watch the lane throughout, and everyone goes back to the training room afterwards for a debrief and a certificate. The seminar is led by Cliff Mann, who the FAQ says has more than three decades of firewalking experience. The FAQ gives Time4Change a 100% safety record.

Who can take part and what it costs

  • Age: 18 and over.
  • Entry: the hospice’s release, issued on 9 November, gives registration as £200 for a team of five. Its event page and FAQ still show the earlier prices, £175 a team or £40 for one person, so check the figure when you register through Enthuse.
  • Sponsorship: at least £200 a walker, or £1,000 a team.
  • Clothing: nothing special.
  • Parking: free at the business park.
  • Spectators: family and friends can watch; the FAQ asks them to arrive by 5.15pm.

Questions go to the hospice’s corporate fundraising team on 01252 729446 or corporate@pth.org.uk.

Close-up of bare feet walking across glowing embers
Bare feet crossing a bed of glowing embers. Photo: via Phyllis Tuckwell

What the money pays for

Phyllis Tuckwell cares for adults with an advanced or terminal illness, such as cancer, heart, lung or neurological disease, across West Surrey and North-East Hampshire, an area of 550,000 people. It says it supports more than 250 patients, relatives and carers every day, at home, in the community, at the hospice in Farnham and at the Beacon Centre in Guildford.

The charity says £1,000, one team’s target, could cover nearly a week of care from one of its In-Patient Unit nurses, each of whom looks after up to five patients. The NHS and government usually meet only about 25% of its costs, so it has to raise more than £30,000 every day to keep its services free to patients and families.

What it means for you

If your office, gym or friendship group fancies it, you need five people aged 18 or over, a fee of around £200 and a plan to raise £1,000 between you before 4 February. If you would rather watch than walk, you can turn up and cheer from 5.15pm.