Mum of Pudsey boy who spent two Christmases in Leeds Children's Hospital has not forgotten a nurse's act of kindness

Finley Chapman was diagnosed with a rare disease when he was two-years-old and was in hospital over Christmas 2018 and 2019.

His mum Clare, 40, of Pudsey, said a nurse gave Finley an advent calendar ahead of one Christmas in hospital - a gesture that had a big impact on her family.

It inspired Clare to launch a crowdfunding campaign, which paid for more than 550 advent calendars for youngsters being treated at Leeds Children's Hospital for Christmas 2019.

And she launched the same appeal this year with the aim of buying an advent calendar for every child being treated at hospitals across West Yorkshire over Christmas.

Clare has achieved her goal after people generously donated a total of 738 advent calendars, which will go to West Yorkshire hospitals, Barnardos and food banks.

Parents at Finley's school - Pudsey Waterloo Primary School - donated 276 calendars and Morrisons at Kirkstall donated more than 160.

Clare said: "I just wanted to give something back, because the nurses looked after Finley so well.

"They don't get paid enough as it is and they were and they were buying advent calendars for the children.

"It cheered him up and it made us realise that people were still thinking about us.

"It meant so much to us that someone had kindly donated this to us at a time where we felt very lost and alone."

Claire is continuing to fundraise at GoFundMe to raise cash to buy Christmas gifts for youngsters at Leeds Children's Hospital.

Clare said Finley, now aged five, was born with a rare disease that meant he choked on every meal and said it was a constant battle to keep him alive for more than two years.

Finley was aged two-and-a-half when it was discovered that an intolerance to dairy was the trigger for a rare allergic disorder stopping him swallowing food properly.

Finley spent the first two weeks of his life on the special care baby unit at Leeds Children’s Hospital.

He was underweight and had difficulty breathing and eating, but doctors could not identify the problem.

Regularly in and out of hospital, he underwent two exploratory operations at the age of two after suffering repeated chest infections and numerous bouts of pneumonia.

He also choked on every meal and was rushed to hospital by ambulance on three occasions.

He was eventually diagnosed with eosinophilic esophagitis - an allergic disorder that causes inflammation of the oesophagus.

His health improved overnight after dairy was removed from his diet.