A CHRISTMAS Grinch ignored his reputation by helping to raise over £1,000 for a baby loss charity.

Organised by Elle Redman, The Grinch made doorstep visits to children across the region, climaxing in a special meet and greet event at Nuttall Park in Ramsbottom.

All donations and proceeds collected between December 22-30 went to Tommy’s, which carries out research into pregnancy loss and premature birth in the UK.

Elle, who organised the fundraiser with her partner Dominic Murphy, said: “In the space of nine months we have lost two babies to something so common that one in four women experience.

“Leading on from the heartache we knew we had to both make a difference and keep our hearts and minds busy.

“We initially advertised on Facebook with families able to book a time slot for their visit, but after 60 applications we had no choice, as a team of two but to shut the diary.

“We did visits until our feet were blue, but the happiness this was bringing to the families meant we had to carry on.”

On one day the couple visited 18 houses over one day, but with so many children wanting to meet the Grinch, Elle, who works at Wellington Villa Nursery in Bury, organised a larger event in Nuttall Park.

“We pulled out all of the stops to ensure this was a safe event,” she added. “Floor markers were used for distanced queuing, hand gel provided and we even had the help of a Covid-19 elf complete with a microphone who was able to give reminders and set standards for being at our event.

“The generosity of this community has touched our hearts and a special mention must go to The Friends of Nuttall Park volunteer group who offered to organise the toilets and takeaway tea room before donating their takings for the duration of the event to our charity.”

For more information go to tommys.org