A Valentine's fundraiser held in honour of a very special Chester toddler has raised more than £1000.

Family and friends of three-year-old Erin Cross, who is battling leukaemia, threw the Valentine’s Party as a fun way to raise money for the Oncology Unit at Alder Hey Hospital where Erin has had much of her treatment.

A huge turnout packed the All Saints Church Hall in Hoole, enjoying lots of activities including a bouncy castle, arts and crafts, face painting, glitter tattoos and a balloon artist.

A special Valentine’s-themed cake competition was judged by Julie Smith of Cake Chester, and Mickey and Minnie Mouse, Cinderella and Daisy Duck were also in attendance to keep the children entertained, as was the Toys R Us mascot.

The winner of the competition was Karen Hunter White and joint second were Billy Chester and Louise Smith.

But it was the meeting between Erin and Becky Golden, a survivor of the same illness Erin is currently battling, which was the highlight of the day.

Becky, 21, who is studying to be a dental nurse, overcame acute lymphoblastic leukaemia as a child and contacted Erin’s family after reading about them in The Chronicle

Erin’s mum Sarah said: “It was so lovely - Erin and Becky just clicked straight away and it was quite emotional!

“We discussed Becky's treatment and the fact that the check up visits to hospital finally reduce to once a year when you reach 18.

“The whole event was just such a big success with a huge turnout. “We thought at one point we would have to stop people coming in!

“People came from as far as Liverpool and Wigan after seeing the event on Twitter and we hope everyone enjoyed themselves despite it being so busy.”

Sarah added: “I’m pleased to say we raised an amazing £1450 from the day.

“I would like to say a huge thanks to everyone that was involved.

“All the companies that came along and entertained the children were fab and a huge thanks must go to my huge army of volunteers - I couldn't have done it without them.”