A DETERMINED Ulverston mother has set out on a mission with the single goal of improving the life of her son.

Lianne Morgan, 34, of Lund Terrace, has set up a fundraising appeal in the hope it will help her son walk again.

When eight-year-old Joe Morgan was just nine months old he was diagnosed with cerebral palsy . To help her son stand tall again Mrs Morgan is trying to raise £100,000 to pay for life-changing surgery in the United States.

Mrs Morgan said the diagnosis was a devastating blow but, as he as grown, he has tackled his physical challenges with hardly a complaint.

She said: He's adapted; he's a little smiler. He's so ambitious; he wants to do lots with his mind, but his body wont let him."

The Morgan family are hoping to raise enough money to pay for Selective Dorsal Rhizotomy surgery, or SDR.

The SDR procedure makes selective cuts in the nerve fibres of the spine, reducing the spasticity, or tension, of the muscles cerebral palsy patients endure. The hope is that, with this treatment, Joe could learn to stand on his own two feet, leaving his wheelchair behind.

On Friday at Sandside Lodge School, James Higgins, editor of The Mail, presented Mrs Morgan and her son with a cheque for £1,000.

The money was a grant made on behalf of the Lake District Farmers Armstrong Family Charitable Trust, and the cash was raised at an annual celebrity chef event held in Dalton, hosted and sponsored by Clarence House Country Hotel and Restaurant.

On receiving the cheque, Mrs Morgan said: "I can't put it into words how grateful I am. It gives me a boost in confidence that we've touched someone's heart."

A JustGiving page has been started, through Just4Children, to help the Morgans meet their target. To donate, please click here to give what you can. You can also donate by texting JOES71, plus your amount, to 70070 (for example, to donate £10 you would text JOES71 £10 70070 - minimum text donation is £5).

Read more about the positive work in the community the Armstrong Family Charitable Trust does:

Barrow Air Cadets walking on air after £1,000 donation.

There is a new spring in Daniel's step after the Armstrong Charitably Trust got in touch