Caring friends of Tom Prince walk streets of Portsmouth in his memory

That’s why a group of friends who grew up with Tom took to the streets of Portsmouth to raise money for the charity set up after he died of a rare form of bone cancer in 2004.

Lauren Stevens, joined by supporters in Pompey shirts, walked eight miles through Fratton, Milton, along Eastney, and through Southsea and Old Portsmouth before finishing up at Gunwharf Quays for a drink in memory of the teenager.

Along the way they did various activities to shake things up, including squat jumps and lunges and an exercise known as the plank.

They carried donation buckets for the Tom Prince Cancer Trust in the hope of helping Tom’s family reach their target of raising £1m for the cause.

And Lauren, 26, of Eastney, says the response from the public during their Blue Day trek on Saturday was amazing.

She said: ‘Tom’s family are such amazing people and we have helped them along the way this far and they are so close now to the £1m target; we want to help them reach that.

‘The challenge was hard at times and it’s taken it a bit out of us, but the team morale has been fantastic.

‘We have had children running up to us and donating money which has been brilliant. We want Tom’s memory to live on, and the cancer he had was so rare. We want to raise as much money as we can to put into that research.’

Lauren says the team have raised around £700, but hope to hit £1,000.

And she says she’s committed to doing even more to support.

She said: ‘We will carry on; we do something every year.

‘We have done fundraisers in local pubs and help out at the annual events that Tom’s family put on as well. So we will keep it going for as long as we possibly can, as much as Tom’s mum and dad want us to be there for them.

‘It’s a lot of hard work and time and commitment that goes into it as well; we’re just glad we can be a part of that and help them.’