A YOUNG girl with a mysterious illness that has left her wheelchair bound has inspired a fundraising drive in her community.

Seven-year-old Jessica Green, of Barbrook Lane, Tiptree, suffers from an undiagnosed, progressive brain disorder which has left her with mobility and speech problems.

A popular pupil at St Luke’s Church of England Primary School, Tiptree, Jessica has been using an NHS wheelchair and is helped around her school by a carer.

Her parents, Kev and Rebecca Green, are keen to see her become an independent wheelchair user, but can’t afford the £1,500 needed to buy her a lighter model to replace her NHS one, which is too bulky and heavy for Jessica to use by herself.

Now, a “Princess on Wheels” campaign has been launched by the Tesco Tiptree Community Champion appeal in the hope of raising the money to buy a new wheelchair for Jessica.

Mrs Green, who has struggled to buy the equipment Jessica needs, said she was “humbled” by the efforts of the community since moving to their new home in Tiptree from Colchester.

Mrs Green, 39, said: “It has been very difficult and in the end we moved to a bungalow because we were having to carry her up and down the stairs ourselves and it became dangerous.

“But, moving to Tiptree has been the best thing we ever did because everyone has been so friendly and supportive.”

She added: “It is a constant battle to get the things we need for Jessica and when we discovered she needed this new wheelchair we didn’t know what to do.

“We are so grateful.”

The fundraising kicked off on Thursday with a sponsored silence by Tesco deputy manager, Paul Rosier, who was banned from talking to customers and staff for the day.

A number of businesses have already donated prizes for a raffle and staff have agreed to come in during their time off to pack customers’ bags on April 23.

Staff will also don red and white to mark St George’s Day.