Sir Chris will abseil from the 310m tower

Everest summiteer Sir Chris Bonington will be scaling the heights of western Europe’s tallest building when he joins fellow charity fundraisers in abseiling from its pinnacle.

The elder statesman of British mountaineering will join a group making the drop from the top of The Shard, the 310m (1,017ft) glass edifice on London’s South Bank.

Sir Chris, chairman of outdoor brand Berghaus, will be joined on Monday by a property lawyer, a mobile phone company magnate, the wife of the Foreign Secretary and numerous supporters of the Outward Bound Trust, one of the two charities to benefit from the event.

The Royal Marines Charitable Trust Fund will also receive proceeds from the challenge, which is also being undertaken by Prince Andrew, sports car racer Nick Leventis and Tory Peer Lord Kirkham, boss of DFS, the furniture chain with a perennial sale.

Outward Bound, of which Sir Chris is a trustee, hopes to use cash from the event to help disadvantaged youngsters, including those from Southwark in which The Shard stands, take part in one of its courses. Its Aberdovey centre’s redevelopment will also use some of the cash.

The Shard. Photo: David Iliff CC-BY-SA-3.0

The Shard will open to the public next year and was built largely with Qatari cash, meaning companies with gambling and alcohol connections are unlikely to be taken on as tenants, as the finance was arranged in accordance with Islamic principles.

Ten luxury flats costing up to £50m each will form part of the building, along with restaurants, office space and a five-star hotel. A public viewing platform for paying visitors will also be opened near its summit.