Family and friends from Barrow have raised more than £1,000 for a children’s cancer charity by taking on a raft of lockdown-friendly challenges.

Nick and Jo-Ann Ellis set up Team Jake to raise money in memory of their son Jake, who died in 2008 from rhabdomyosarcoma, a rare form of the disease, aged five.

They and around 100 supporters usually participate in the annual Keswick to Barrow and Coniston to Barrow walks, which, like many other events, have been postponed due to COVID-19.

With many charities relying on such events for vital fundraising, Team Jake, in lieu of the planned walks, wanted to show their support for Children's Cancer and Leukaemia Group.

Since being set up Team Jake has raised over £200,000 for vital research into rhabdomyosarcoma.

Jo-Ann said: “We still wanted to help the charity with some extra pennies through this difficult time.

"I have always had an interest in running and my son Luke sometimes likes to run, so we decided to run 50k over a three-week period.

“My little girl Poppy, who is nine, wanted to get involved, too. She did a danceathon, where she danced for two hours continuously.

“I think she really enjoyed her challenge, she just loves dancing and singing away to herself, but she did say she was shattered at the end

“For Luke and I, we certainly felt the challenge was hard. It can be tough building up your fitness again and trying to keep motivated sometimes when you’ve been comfortable on your sofa.

“Others joined in, like our good friends Marianne Jackson and Laura Whalley, who walked 43miles - the length of the Keswick to Barrow - over a period of time, and some regular supporters, Jacob and Kim Everett, joined in with sponsored running.

“So many charities are reaching out at these difficult times, but everyone has one close to their hearts. CCLG is amazing and has always been so close to our own after losing our beautiful son Jake.

“I know when Jake was receiving treatment, it was such a worrying, stressful time and I can’t imagine how it feels for poor families going through that during lockdown.

“CCLG has been brilliant in supporting and delivering information to families during this time and raising over £1000 feels like such an achievement, and especially satisfying to be able to support such a worthy charity.”

Stephen Humphries, CCLG Fundraising Development Manager, paid tribute to them for their continued dedication, and their support for CCLG in general during COVID-19.

He said: “What Team Jake has achieved to date is absolutely amazing. We work with a number of families who choose to fundraise for cancer-specific research in memory of their child, but for Team Jake to consider how the impact of COVID-19 would affect our overall income, and choose to support us, gives us an even greater sense of appreciation.”

Jo-Ann added her appreciation for their supporters and spoke of how Jake continues to inspire them.

She said: “We are so grateful and proud of our family, friends and community over the years helping us raise an incredible amount of money. Our son Jake was an inspiration to myself and Nick the way he got up each day and tackled cancer on a daily basis, always with his cheeky smile.

“We will always continue to raise much needed funds for research until no more families have to go through what we did.”

To donate to Team Jake’s challenges, visit: https://www.justgiving.com/campaign/team-jake