A NEWPORT girl is full of joy after finally finding a bike to allow her to play like other children.

Lilith Bingham, 10, has cerebral palsy and has always struggled to be able to ride bikes because of the way the condition affects her legs.

Recently mum Ceri Bingham found Tomcat Trikes, a business that deals in trikes, and a special trike was taken to Lilith for her to try.

“At first she didn’t want a trike,” said Mrs Bingham, from the Caerleon Road area. “We’ve tried loads of different bikes for her but because of her legs, her knees tend to go inwards and that can lead to further complications such as hip displacements and she already has enough to deal with.

“When they brought the trike down, her eyes lit up and she said, ‘mum you didn’t tell me the trike would look like that!’

“Tomcat Trikes were amazing. She got on the trike herself which is the first time she’s done that with any type of bike. She started to ride it and they would make adjustments and within 10 minutes she was having an amazing time riding up and down the street.”

The trike would cost £3,740 for Lilith to have – a price Mrs Bingham did not think she could afford.

“Lilith knew it was expensive and she was not expecting to be able to have it, but she’s been so overwhelmed after seeing that people have donated money for her to have this,” she said

Lilith was born 11 weeks premature, and doctors believe that the lack of oxygen is what caused her cerebral palsy. She has the spastic diplegia form of the condition which affects both her legs, and she walks on her tiptoes due to this. The condition also affects her balance.

A fundraising page was set up by Mrs Bingham's friend Victoria Kinchin – whose child goes to the same school as Lilith. The fundraiser is currently on £2,000.

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“Vic said that she set up the fundraiser and said, ‘I hope you don’t mind.’ She said that she can just go and buy a bike for her daughter to go out and play but that I can’t do that, and she wanted to help.”

Lilith has been excited to take part in the bike awareness course in school, but it is unlikely the trike will be with her by then as there is still more than £1,000 to go and the trike will have to be specially modified.

“She’s an amazing girl," said Mrs Bingham. "She wants to get involved with everything like PE but gets frustrated as she has to have a rest for 10 minutes. She’s hoping to be able to do the bike course, but the school have said she can do it next year if needs be, so she doesn’t miss out.”

You can view and donate to the fundraising page here: https://www.gofundme.com/f/lilith-bingham-needs-a-bike