By Patrick Hill

Last updated 10:09, Saturday, 31 May 2008

A Carlisle nursery will today hold a treasure hunt to raise money for research into a rare kidney disease that killed the mother of one of their youngsters.

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Missed: Nicola Scott

Staff at the Wendy House Nursery on Blackwell Road are organising the family event to raise funds for research into Goodpasture’s Syndrome at an Edinburgh hospital.

Nicola Scott, 38, who worked at Tesco in the city centre, died last October, just 20 days after being diagnosed with the disease that affects one in a million people.

She was engaged to be married to her fiance Peter Little, 36, and they had been together for eight years after meeting in city pub The Joiner’s Arms.

Their daughter Sadie, now two-and-a-half, has attended the nursery for two years. Peter, of Scalegate Road, Upperby, says she is too young to understand what has happened but that she says goodnight to pictures of Nicola every night.

He said: “I put all the pictures up after Nicola died so that Sadie can remember her mammy. She’s still a bit too young to understand exactly what has happened, but she’s starting to ask questions and when we go to the headstone she kisses it. It’s really touching.

“It has been very difficult but everyone has been absolutely brilliant. We’re lucky we’ve got a lot of people to support us.

“It’s very, very nice of the nursery to organise the treasure hunt. Goodpasture’s is so rare, it doesn’t even have a charity. Most people have never heard of it. You don’t expect it to happen to someone so close to you.

“I just hope a lot of people turn up. We need to get across to people the disease is there and it isn’t a disease to be forgotten about.”

Nursery manager Wendy Dobie said: “We decided to raise money for research into the disease because we wanted to do something to help support Peter, who must be going through a hard time.

“Nicola was a lovely girl, she was always willing to chat and would tell us about her ponies and horses.

“Sadie’s a real little character, she’s lovely.”

The hunt costs £2.50 to take part in and starts at the nursery at 6.30pm.

“Absolutely anyone is welcome to come along and take part,” added Peter.

For further information, call the Wendy House Nursery on 01228 402102.