Debbie Pike, 39 from Tilehurst, was inspired to raise the vital cash because her 13-year-old son Matthew has been a regular on the wards since being diagnosed with acute lymphoblastic leukaemia in 2010.

Through her work at the Co-operative Mid-County branch in Tilehurst, Debbie managed to raise nearly £750 through cake sales and raffles which she donated to the hospital on Tuesday, May 1 to buy two specialist trolleys to test children’s ears, noses and throats.

Each trolley costs around £600, and Debbie said: “It’s just brilliant to be able to give something back, as nurses give such a lot to their patients but often do not get enough credit.” Matthew, a Little Heath School pupil, has been in remission since November and Debbie said the family have their fingers crossed for his recovery.

She added: “It feels better, but we are taking one day at a time.”

She was spurred on by Lion and Dolphin Ward nurses Amy Younger and Rachael Wharton who have been running together for three years and decided to go the extra mile for the hospital by tacking a gruelling 10k assault course.

The pair battled their way through barbed wire, electric fences, fire and mud to complete the Back to the Trenches obstacle course and raise £700 for the wards.

Rachael said: “The response made the challenge worthwhile – it was difficult, but it made you all the more determined not to give up as so many people had donated. We just had to up the ante and keep going.”