Swaffham school's sponsored bounce-a-thon raises hundreds for Esmé's appeal

It was a day of jumps and leaps at Swaffham Church of England VC Infant and Nursery School on Tuesday as a sponsored bounce-a-thon was held to support a town family.

The event, which saw 206 children take turns in bouncing on a bouncy castle at the school throughout the day, raised more than £800 towards a fundraising appeal for two-year-old Esmé Lambert and her family.

It comes after an appeal hoping to raise £30,000 for the Lambert family was launched in November last year, after Esmé was diagnosed with a brain tumour at the end of October.

The appeal was started by family friends who hope the money raised will allow self-employed decorator Aaron, Esmé’s dad, to take time off work so he and Wendy, Esmé’s mum, are able to look after their daughter and take her for regular hospital trips.

So far, according to the GoFundMe page, just over half of the target has been raised with more than £15,200 gathered.

Organiser Hils Genn said a “special thanks” should go to Joanna Branham from Inflate-A-Bubbles who supplied the bouncy castle for free.

A special fundraiser will be taking place on Saturday, March 2 – Esmé’s Fundraising Event – at Stanley’s in Swaffham in two parts.

From 12pm to 3pm, it’s free entry to an open day with stalls, children’s entertainment, face painting, and a tombola.

Later on, from 6pm to 11pm, it’s a ticketed event, with a country singer, live band, an evening buffet and a big raffle will also be held on the night.

For a family of four it’s £15 and £3.50 per child thereafter, with individual tickets costing £5.

Tickets can be bought from a stall at the Swaffham indoor market next Saturday.