A determined Southport girl with cerebral palsy has completed her ‘12 Days of Christmas’ challenge, walking further than she has ever done to raise nearly £3,000 for the Dandelion Days charity.
Ella Bowles, 16, is unable to walk without either a wheelchair or a walker.
She began her challenge of walking different routes throughout Southport and Birkdale along with her supporters on Saturday, 13th December 2025 and completed it on Christmas Eve.
People can still donate to her appeal here: https://www.justgiving.com/crowdfunding/jenny-bowles
The 12 walks Ella completed before Christmas are all to raise funds for Dandelions Days.
The non-for-profit enterprise based in Scarisbrick, near Southport, uses horses to help children and adults to cope with anxiety, depression, confidence issues and general mental health wellbeing with the help of their lovely horses through Equine Assisted Learning.
Her proud mum Jenny Bowles said:
“Ella completed her last festive walk on Christmas Eve. Flanked by Father Christmas and Rudolf she competed over 40km in her walker over the 12 days before Christmas walking around Southport and Birkdale.
“Ella wants to say a huge thank you to the people of Southport for their support, encouragement and donations. So many people stopped her to recognise her efforts in support of a great cause.
“Dandelion Days in Scarisbrick supports children and adults to cope with the stress of life through work with their amazing horses and ponies.
“Ella has been a participant of Dandelion Days which helped with her confidence and self esteem. She is now a proud volunteer and a strong advocate for their work which she describes as ‘life changing.’
“Thanks to local people and friends from further afield, Ella far exceeded her target of £1,000 as she has raised close to £3,000.
“The Just giving page https://www.justgiving.com/crowdfunding/jenny-bowles will be kept open until the 7th January 2026 after which the final amount will be given to Dandelion Days, Scarisbrick to support the continuation of their transformative work.”
Ella said: “I have moderate cerebral palsy, which affects my mobility in several ways, and as a result I am unable to walk unaided and rely on either a wheelchair or a walker.
“Dandelion Days has had a life changing impact on me personally.
“I began as a service user at a time when I struggled with confidence and self belief. Over time, the support I received helped me build the strength to become a volunteer myself, and now I see every day the difference the organisation makes to so many vulnerable people.
“Thank you from the bottom of my heart for your generosity; it means the world to me.”
To support Ella’s appeal please visit: Crowdfunding For Good From JustGiving
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