HE is literally climbing mountains to help his gravely ill child.

Dad Rob Ritchie will climb 8,848 metres on skis – the equivalent of scaling Mount Everest -– to raise money to fight children's brain tumours after his six-year-old son Toby was diagnosed with the condition last year.

Toby has undergone major surgery and 18 months of chemotherapy - with more gruelling treatment to come.

Rob, who lives near Romsey with his wife Tanya and two more sons Arthur and Patrick, said: “As a parent, when your child is diagnosed with cancer, you feel totally powerless. It’s as if your world has spun out of control.

“Everything you have worked towards to provide your child with a safe future is torn up in seconds in your face.

“You think of all the things you would be prepared to do. Give your body for his, walk to the ends of the earth, climb the highest mountain and scream to the skies. But none of that works. It can’t be done. It won’t help.”

The family found out that Toby had a brain tumour after he was rushed to hospital with a chest infection which became pneumonia and led to a ten-day stay in intensive care.

Toby took several months to recover and the hospital were able to do a blood test and brain scan. In March 2013 the scan revealed that Toby had a tumour which because of its position in his brain stem, could not be fully removed by surgery, so the family opted for chemotherapy to slow its growth.

Rob added he and wife Tanya, 41 spent “days in shock and tears” after the diagnosis but were determined to stick together as a family and face the ordeal head on.

The 41-year-old added: “We take each day as it comes. Toby is an incredibly brave boy, doing all that is asked of him with little complaint.”

A managing director at Goldman Sachs, Rob has gathered a team of 13 people to take on the challenge which will raise cash for The Brain Tumour Charity.

He added: “You realise maybe you can do something, maybe you should climb a mountain - climb Everest or your personal Everest.

“Take a team and test yourselves, achieve something new, do something tough and beyond all else help raise awareness of paediatric brain tumours. We’ll raise money for the best charity researching brain tumours, to help Toby and others fighting similar battles.”

Rob’s team will make 13 ascents, climbing on touring skis for around 28 hours in total, with only two hours of downhill skiing.

The 'Everest in the Alps' event will take place in the Alps in Switzerland next March.