Hornchurch mother takes up running to raise funds for nephew with disabilities

Alexander Liggins, 6, who lives in Tiptree, was born 16 weeks premature when his parents Alison and Matt were on holiday in Mallorca.

Matt’s sister Lauren Flower, 38, is planning to take part in a series of running events over the next year, starting with the Victoria Park 5K this weekend and hopefully culminating in the London Marathon in 2027.

Alex’s mum Alison, a merchandiser said: ‘It was quite a shock when Alex was born, we’d only arrived in Mallorca six hours earlier! We were eventually repatriated back to the UK after 9.5 weeks. Alexander stayed in hospital for another 6.5 weeks, and then we finally came home!’

‘All was going well until, at 9 months old, he developed infantile spasms, which is a rare form of epilepsy that causes developmental delays.

‘We stayed in hospital for a month while we tried to gain control, and we did have a brief spell in remission, only for Alex to relapse again a couple of months later.’

‘Alexander is non-mobile, non-verbal and PEG fed. He was having up to 300 spasms per day at one point but this is now under better control. The main problem at the moment is dystonia, which is restricting the little movement he has as his left hip has become dislocated due to his muscles pulling it out.’

‘In spite of this he is a happy little boy who loves to be outside, socialising, enjoys school and loves hydrotherapy and being in the water.’

Friends and family have already rallied around raising funds through events including a 35 mile walk and a mud run. The family are currently prioritising raising money for an off-road wheelchair and therapies to ease Alexander’s dystonia.

The family is being supported by children’s charity Tree of Hope, which helps families raise money for children and young people like Alexander for medical treatments and healthcare services not freely available to them through the NHS and social care. The charity provides fundraising guidance, campaign development, financial management, charity registration and emotional support from the Family Support team. Families like Alexander’s benefit from having the support, tools and resources to fundraise effectively as well as access to gift aid, corporate support while also providing donor reassurance.

To donate to Alexander’s fund or to sponsor Lauren, visit https://www.treeofhope.org.uk/get-involved/childrens-campaigns/alexander-the-brave/ or  https://www.justgiving.com/page/lauren-flower-1