Young woman whose wheelchair was falling apart receives boost from Jason Manford

A young woman with a muscle-wasting disease can not get a much-needed new wheelchair – thanks to a fundraising boost from Jason Manford.

Jess Donohoe’s current chair is falling apart, and is being held together by a spoon and a piece of string.

The MEN ran an appeal to raise the £16,000 needed to get her a new specialised chair, which is not available on the NHS.

Their efforts were given a boost when Salford comedian Jason Manford shared their campaign.

Writing on his Facebook page, the 8 Out of 10 Cats panellist said: “This week we are going to help Jess get a new wheelchair.

“Saw her in my local paper and my heart hurt reading her story. I knew you lot would feel the same. Remember only donate what you can afford, if you can’t donate please just share it to your followers.

“This is your chance to join a beautiful movement of human positivity and collective love for our fellow humans.

“Only having £2 or £5 or even £10 can often feel pointless when someone like Jess needs so much, but together, as a team we can make a change to someone’s life.”

Her dad Michael added: “The response has been fantastic. I can’t believe that people are so generous.

“It’s probably people with little money themselves who have donated as well. Jason galvanises the masses.”