FUND-RAISERS are gearing up to help two girls believed to be the only children in the UK with a rare skin complaint.

Niamh Tottey, three, and her two-year-old sister Isabelle were born with Cutis Laxa, which is Latin for loose skin.

They are two of only a few hundred people worldwide with a genetic tissue disorder which causes skin to hang in loose folds.

Mum Trudi, 37, of Appleton Drive, Shirebrook said: "Because there is no skin elasticity this can also affect their internal organs like the heart and lungs as they develop.  They both have to see a lot of different doctors: they have their own ENT doctor, cardiology doctor, dermatologist and paedetrician.  Because it’s such a rare condition — I believe there is an 18-year-old in London with the condition but she moved here from Turkey — there seems to be no funding for research, although there is a support group based in France."

Alison Hibben is organising an It’s a Knockout event to drum up funds for the support group, Cutis Laxa International.

She is a member of a team called Yummy Mummies which is signed up for the event at the Army cadet centre fields on Fauvel Road from 1-5pm on 13 June. Other teams include The Gasbags, from British Gas in Hattersley, The Corner Cupboard pub and Little Beavers Day Nursery.

Alison said: "We want 15 teams of 10 reasonably fit adults to take part. Each team needs to raise £350 entry fee (£35 per head) and they can do this through sponsorship andfundraising. Anything above this then gets donated to the charity of their choice.

"On the day we will also have rides for the children, a beer tent, barbecue, face painter, toy and other stalls, so it's going to be a fun day out for the whole community."

Email Alison for more details at alison.hibben@centrica.com  or ring 07789 571926.

The knockabout BBC TV show ran through the ‘70s to 1982 and was hosted by Stuart Hall, who was raised in Glossop and attended the town‘s grammar school.