LITTLE Amy Jobson was just four-years-old when she was diagnosed with diabetes. Her parents, Jacqui and Stephen, were devastated when doctors gave them the news.

But one year on the youngster from Strood, who recently turned six, proved to family and friends she would fight against the disease no matter what.

With the help of her mother, she trawled three-and-a-half miles around Regents Park in London, raising an impressive £1,008 for the charity Diabetes UK.

Jacqui said: Every month we get a magazine sent to us. I saw the sponsored walk being advertised so I told Amy about it and she asked if we could do it. I told her that by raising money we would be paying for the people that care for her and that maybe by the time she is 26, there could be a cure."

The family, from Beech Road in Strood, travelled to London last month to complete the two-hour trek alongside 600 other walkers.

Jacqui, 38, said: "I did the walk with Amy and she did really well. I would say she was one of the youngest there. There were other youngsters being carried and pushed around in buggies. But Amy walked the whole way by herself. She kept having snacks and drinks.

ÒAt the end, she was splashing in the puddles to keep herself going."

Her charitable efforts were all the more impressive as Amy had to battle through wind and rain finally to cross the finishing line.

Amy, who goes to Sherwin Knight Infant School in Cedar Road, Strood, has Type One diabetes. This means that she has too much sugar in her blood.

But despite her young age, Jacqui says Amy is coping really well with the disease. She added: "She has to have two injections a day and blood tests done by the doctor every three months, but she is doing really well.ÒWe are just so proud of her and the fact she raised so much money for Diabetes UK is a great achievement for someone so young."

Amy asked neighbours, friends and family for cash and managed to raise the first £508 all by herself.

Her mother's employer, Lloyds TSB, then agreed to match young Amy's donations, bringing her total sponsorship to £1,008.

The walk was one of 36 that take place between May and July every year throughout the UK.