EMPLOYEES at Nation-wide put their nerves to the ultimate test at the weekend as they jumped out of a plane at nearly 4,000ft.

The group of 10 workers, from the service and performance department, took part in the daredevil parachute jump to raise money for the British Heart Foundation.

The jump was organised by risk analyst Helen Gilbert and the group of men and women, who range in age from early 20s to late 40s, have spent weeks gathering sponsorship and arranging fundraising events in the lead up to the big day.

Helen, 26, of Oakhurst, was taking part in her second parachute jump, having already done one in Australia five years ago.

“It was a lot worse this time around – the first time I didn’t really think about it, but this time there has been such a big build up leading up to it and organising everything. I was probably the most nervous out of everybody, I was terrified,” she said.

“The moment you jump out of the plane is just horrible, it feels like your insides are going to fall out. I told my mum I wouldn’t do it again, but I don’t know, everyone is already talking about doing another one at the end of the summer because it went so well.”

Lesley Owen, 23, of Old Town, was one of the participants.

“I was quite nervous beforehand, a couple of people had done it before but I hadn’t,” she said.

“I was nervous and excited but it was for a good cause so there was no going back.”

“The actual jump itself was a bit of a blur. The plane ride before felt like the longest flight of my life even though it was only about 20 minutes – long enough to reach about two miles high.

“It was really nice because it was such a lovely day and we had absolutely fantastic views, it was amazing, but I was glad to have my feet back on the floor at the end.”

The group chose the British Heart Foundation because it is has special significance to them.

Lesley said: “The mum of somebody who works in our department recently passed away after suffering a heart attack, and there are also a couple of us who have heart-related stories, so we chose to support the British Heart Foundation.

“We had a lot of friends and family there supporting us on the ground on the day which was great, and a lot of our colleagues at Nationwide.

“I think we have raised over £2,000 so far, we wanted to raise as much as we possibly could. We are going to carry on with the charity work, it is a bit of an ongoing thing.”