A TEAM of injured service personnel conquered the frozen wastes of Antarctica to complete their mission to the South Pole.

Major Kate Philp, of Knightwick, near Worcester, was one of the adventurers to stand at the bottom of the world when the final steps of the Virgin Money South Pole Allied Challenge came to an end at 12.38pm British time on Friday.

After skiing for more than three weeks, Major Philp, who was the first female to lose a limb fighting in Afghanistan, travelled more than 200 miles across the bleak continent as part of the British team.

However, the race element of the challenge in aid of the Walking with the Wounded charity was suspended by Ed Parker, expedition director and co-founder of the charity, because of safety reasons on Saturday, December 7.

This meant the US and Commonwealth teams joined forces with the Brits to finish the distance as a group effort with some of the competitors having become very tired due to the difficult terrain.

Prince Harry was expedition patron of the 2013 challenge and complete the full distance, having joined the first Walking with the Wounded fund-raising expedition to the North Pole in 2011.

Ed Parker said: "We always knew that this wasn't going to be easy, but that is what makes the challenge so exciting. Our aim was to show that, despite injury, young men and women from our armed forces can still achieve great things.

"We came down here, determined to get 12 men and women, all injured in conflict, to the South Pole, and this is what we have done. The feeling is incredible."

Major Philp lost part of her leg while on the front line in Afghanistan in 2008 when the armoured vehicle she was commanding was hit by an Improvised Explosive Device (IED).

As a result of her injuries, the Iraq veteran had her left leg amputated below the knee.