Christians Against Poverty have won an award for their 15 campaign to raise funds for their debt counselling work.

The campaign challenged CAP founder John Kirkby and charity supporters to run 15 marathons in 15 days.

The huge feat, which coincided with the charity's 15th anniversary, took them across the UK and as far away as Australia and New Zealand, raising an impressive £1.2m.

In addition to running, Mr Kirkby had a demanding schedule of speaking engagements over the 15 days, including a fundraising dinner hosted at each marathon venue.

His running companions updated supporters on their progress via a specially created website featuring daily video blogs and a live running total.

The Institute of Fundraising was so impressed with the campaign that it gave CAP its "Best Use of Events" award.

CAP's efforts were praised by the panel of judges at a glittering ceremony at the Hilton in London on 2 July.

They said: “Christians Against Poverty squeezed more out of their 15 year celebrations by mixing dinners and individual sponsorship with their marathon running. The excellent coverage they achieved and the £1.2m raised was breathtaking for a charity this size.”

Mr Kirkby said: “I am so proud of the team who worked so hard before and after the 15 campaign. Organising 15 dinners on consecutive nights takes huge amounts of planning and stamina.

“Those of us running felt so appreciated by everything that went on and we felt that our effort was constantly being magnified. Visiting Number 10 with stories of our clients and their situations was a personal highlight.

“None of us expected to raise as much as we did and a big thank you goes to our loyal and generous supporters who understand that CAP needs to open more centres in new areas so that desperate people can know there is hope and a solution to their spiralling debt problems.”