A mother-of-two is working hard to help a seven-year-old girl to walk unaided by raising money to fund vital physiotherapy following life-changing surgery.

The Comet: Jen Clare standing independently, wearing 'pretty shoes' she asked for when she no longer had to wear splintsJen Clare standing independently, wearing 'pretty shoes' she asked for when she no longer had to wear splints (Image: Archant)

Jen Clare, of Kimbolton Crescent in Stevenage, has quadriplegic cerebral palsy – a condition which makes limbs extremely stiff.

She had struggled to sit up properly or stand until, in January 2012 at the age of three, she went to the USA for an operation after Comet readers helped raise the £40,000 needed to pay for a specialist procedure.

The surgery involved severing the nerves carrying signals to the brain which cause the muscles to permanently tighten – with the aim of helping Jen walk independently.

Jen, who goes to Peartree Spring Primary School in Stevenage, has been having physiotherapy since the operation and is able to walk unaided for a few minutes at a time.

In January, her family appealed for help in funding this vital treatment, which costs £140 a session. The Clare family are hoping to raise £7,500 to fund a session a week for a year, and have already amassed more than £1,500 since the 2016 appeal began.

Now, Amanda Smith, who opened pottery painting and craft studio Cre-Art-Ivity on Stotfold’s Regent Street in January, is backing the cause.

Amanda, who lives in Stevenage herself, said: “We have already held a colouring competition and have had a competition to win a jar of Easter treats. This was 50p a go and all money raised has been going into Jen’s physiotherapy fund.

“As this is such a great cause, we are also going to donate half of our studio fee to Jen’s Fund during the last week of the Easter holidays – April 11 to 16. So the more people who paint, the more money we can raise for this amazing little girl.

“My daughters, Holly and Lucy, go to the same school as Jen and are delighted to be able to help too. Both of them have put their own money towards Jen’s physiotherapy fund.”

Cre-Art-Ivity is open from 10am to 5pm every day except Thursdays and Sundays, when the studio is closed.

For more information or to book, call 01462 835672, email cre-art-ivity@outlook.co.uk or visit www.cre-art-ivity.co.uk.

You can also support Jen by donating at gofundme.com/Jensphysio.