Chloe and Liam Together Forever charity helps boxing club get on the road

Members of Seconds Out Boxing Academy had launched a fundraising effort to enable them to buy a minibus.

But thanks to the Chloe and Liam Together Trust the group were able to reach their target sooner than they thought.

Coach Paul Eddy, from the club based in Ferryhill, Durham, said: “The boxing academy was opened in 2011 and it does a lot for the young people in the community.

“Last year, we took some of our young people to the England Schools Boys and Girls competition in Manchester as we had a young girl competing.

“We borrowed a bus and the memories that were created on the bus going down was fantastic. I just wanted the young people to have the opportunity not just to compete but to also make these kind of memories on our way to and from competitions and events.

“Some of our kids don’t leave the area so to be able to give them that experience is amazing.”

The bus, which has the Trust logo displayed on it, was brought to South Shields where the young boxers were able to thank the parents of Chloe Rutherford and Liam Curry in person.

Paul said: “When Lisa phoned me to say they were donating £4,000, it was like a dream come true.

“What the parents have gone through. It is amazing what they are doing and they are such lovely people.”

The Trust was created as a lasting legacy to Chloe, 17, and Liam, 19, who were killed in the Manchester Arena bomb attack in May 2017.