Deputy Prime Minister Heng Swee Keat (second from left) with Minister for Social and Family Development Desmond Lee at yesterday's Community Chest Heartstrings Walk, which saw participants stroll through a 4km bicentennial-themed route around Marina Bay.

Some 8,000 participants stepped forward to raise more than $2.57 million in the walk.

The funds will go towards 200 social service programmes supported by the Community Chest, which organised the walk with Marina Bay Sands (MBS).

The money will help children with special needs, youth at risk, adults with disabilities, needy families, vulnerable seniors and people with mental health conditions.

There was also a vertical marathon, which saw Speaker Tan Chuan-Jin, nine climbers with special needs and seven volunteers race up the 57 storeys of MBS together with other participants.