Pride of Britain: Mum's incredible act after daughter's heartbreaking question in hospital

Later this month, The Mirror volition observe the 25th Pride of Britain Awards - and up of the ceremony, we've rounded up immoderate of the unthinkable finalists for ITV's Fundraiser of the Year award

The nominees for the Daily Mirror Pride of Britain Awards, successful concern with TSB, embody the precise champion of humanity.

Whether driven by idiosyncratic experiences oregon the tendency to assistance others, they amusement however 1 person’s efforts tin make lasting alteration and interaction countless lives.

Across the UK determination are 17 nominations for ITV’s Fundraiser of The Year award, celebrating radical successful antithetic regions who person gone supra and beyond to rise funds for foundation - and each of them are worthy winners.

But portion we await the judges' decision, successful the 2nd of 2 articles we look astatine those successful the moving for the coveted gong connected the large night…

Charlotte Fairall

Charlotte Fairall is making beingness amended for thousands of families with children successful hospital. She founded the foundation Sophie’s Legacy successful honour of her 10-year-old daughter, Sophie, who passed distant from crab successful 2021. During Sophie’s treatment, Charlotte struggled to find nutrient and essentials portion staying overnight astatine the hospital, starring to 1 of Sophie’s dying wishes: to amended the enactment strategy for parents with children successful hospitals.

“Sophie utilized to say, you are successful infirmary due to the fact that I americium unwell, wherefore are they not feeding you?” says Charlotte, of Stubbington, Hampshire. In the past year, Sophie’s Legacy raised £450,000, helping implicit 60,000 families astatine 12 hospitals, with plans to grow to 15 more. Charlotte organises assorted fundraising events and is determined to widen this inaugural nationwide. “I americium precise driven, and I privation this to beryllium achieved,” explains the inspiring mum.

Laura Hughes

For the past 5 years Laura Hughes, from Formby, Liverpool, has dedicated her beingness to warring weapon crime. But the crushed down it is devastating. In 2001, her member Colin McGinty was conscionable 21 erstwhile helium was stabbed to decease successful a lawsuit of mistaken identity. “It was brutal and adjacent present it's brutal. What happened to Colin is happening much and more. More families are going done it,” explains Laura. In 2019, she founded the foundation kNOw Knife Crime to rise consciousness and funds for bleed power kits, which are present placed crossed Merseyside and the UK. Laura delivers talks successful schools astir the dangers of carrying knives and has raised implicit £115,000 for the kits doing challenges specified arsenic moving a marathon. While she hopes nary 1 volition request the kits, she says: “Whenever you spot anyone socialising we privation to person instrumentality there. We are creating a affirmative bequest successful Colin’s name.”

Tim Bell

Tim Bell says his doctrine successful beingness is to “make radical smile” - and helium surely does that. The 79-year-old retired technologist from Sheerness, Kent, has cleverly transformed an mean mobility scooter into a mock-up aerial ambulance implicit with dependable effects, a fume instrumentality and adjacent a Paddington Bear artifact connected the tail. The invention serves to pull attention, arsenic good arsenic the information helium dresses up, dances, and chats with locals successful bid to transportation them to donate to the Kent Surrey and Sussex Air Ambulance (KSS). “I americium successful awe of what they do,” explains humble Tim. ‘It's 1 of the reasons I've stuck with the aerial ambulance due to the fact that they're specified beauteous radical to fundraise for..” And the foundation is successful awe of him too, due to the fact that Tim’s fundraising has raised implicit £56,000 for the cause. He has besides turned different mobility scooter into an service vessel and astatine astir 80 shows nary signs of slowing down

Martin Cosser

Martin Cosser’s beingness was irreparably changed everlastingly erstwhile his 17-year-old lad Charlie was stabbed to decease successful July 2023 astatine an end-of-term party. Whilst Charlie was connected beingness support, Martin from Milford, Surrey, made him a committedness - to dedicate his beingness to tackling weapon crime. “I said, ‘You volition person a bequest son, due to the fact that you're not aged capable to physique your ain but I volition marque definite everyone knows who you are,” explains the devastated dad. He launched the foundation Charlie's Promise successful his son’s representation and works tirelessly to amended young radical connected the interaction of weapon transgression portion raising funds to supply enactment to victims' families. Through schoolhouse presentations and assorted events, including sports tournaments and household amusive runs, Martin has raised astir £200,000 to honour his son's representation and amended young radical astir the dangers of weapon crime. “Charlie would beryllium immensely proud, I americium sure,” says Martin.

Sergio Petrucci

On the greeting of his daughter’s life-saving bosom surgery, Sergio Petrucci made a promise. Looking retired astatine the striking sunrise helium vowed that if his two-year-old, Luna, afloat recovered helium would bash each helium could to assistance those who request cardiac care. Thankfully his girl pulled done her cognition astatine Freeman Hospital successful Newcastle successful 2015, and this prompted Sergio to make the Red Sky Foundation. The foundation supports radical with bosom conditions, raises funds for captious instrumentality and aftercare, specified arsenic bosom and encephalon scan machines, and has installed implicit 700 defibrillators successful schools and nationalist spaces. Red Sky besides offers grooming successful CPR and defibrillator use, arsenic good arsenic counselling services for those affected by bosom illness oregon cardiac events. To date, the foundation has raised implicit £2 million. Despite each this, Sergio insists he’s not a hero. “The radical who are heroes are the ones we help”.

Stanley Tomkins

Stanley Tomkins has been a dedicated fundraiser successful Kilkeel, County Down, since moving determination successful the 1970s to negociate the section TSB bank. Over the decades, helium has raised much than £750,000 for Cancer Research and contributed to different causes, including Save the Children and Kilkeel’s Jim’s Youth Centre. The funds person helped grow the younker centre and found a intelligence wellness hub offering counselling and outreach services for young people. His fundraising is driven by idiosyncratic loss, having mislaid his woman to bosom crab and a girl to a encephalon tumour. “That worldly eggs you connected to effort and assistance out,” helium says. Despite turning 87, Stanley remains progressive successful organising thoroughfare collections and different initiatives, known for his unwavering committedness to helping others successful his community. Ever modest, Stanley says, “It is each owed to the radical successful Kilkeel.”

Gary Cook

Through his passionateness for metallic detecting, Gary Cook from Wiltshire has raised hundreds of thousands of pounds for charity. He organises the yearly Rodney Cook Memorial Rally successful representation of his father, who passed distant from crab successful 2017. “My begetter was not conscionable my dad, but my champion mate,” explains Gary. The rally has gained immense popularity, with tickets selling retired wrong minutes, and radical from astir the world attending the event, which is held astatine a antithetic determination each twelvemonth and is referred to arsenic “the Glastonbury of metallic detecting.” Gary, who calls his begetter his leader and mentor, started the lawsuit to enactment crab charities and has truthful acold raised £418,000 for the RUHX foundation of the Royal United Hospitals successful Bath and the Great Western Hospital foundation successful Swindon. “The champion portion is erstwhile we manus the cheque over. If it helps 1 household to not person to spell done what I went done it is each worthy it.”

Joshua Denning

Joshua Denning, 20, is simply a well-known and beloved fig successful the seaside municipality of Lyme Regis, Dorset. Rain oregon shine, Joshua, who has autism, tin beryllium recovered with his signature postulation bucket, tirelessly raising wealth for section charities. Since the property of eight, Joshua has raised astir £50,000 for section charities specified arsenic the Lyme Regis RNLI, Lyme Regis Regatta, and the Royal British Legion. “I travel down to rise wealth for section organisations each azygous day. It makes maine consciousness good,” says Joshua. Always smiling, helium engages the assemblage with affable conversations portion raising funds, making him a go-to fig for immoderate charitable request successful the town. His dedication and affirmative tone person turned him into a section celebrity, adjacent earning him the honour of switching connected the town’s Christmas lights.