More than £21,000 donated in just days in memory of Claudia Marsh

On her 25th birthday, Claudia Marsh from Heswall died of COVID-19 in The Royal Liverpool University Hospital.

It is clear that Claudia, a recently qualified teacher, was a very special young woman.

When her life was affected by an eating disorder, she, and her family, were immensely grateful for the help and support provided by the charity, TEDS.

TEDS stands for Talking Eating Disorders, and is a Merseyside based group open to anyone experiencing an eating disorder. The group also encourages carers, parents, extended family members and friends to attend.

Claudia's mum, Tina, said: "TEDS was a huge help, not only to Claudia, but also to the family. It gave us hope and much needed support and, as Claudia recovered, she then became a support to other sufferers and their families."

Claudia would also give up her time and energy to another Liverpool based charity, the Whitechapel Centre, which helps the homeless find housing and lead independent lives.

Says Tina: "During lockdown last year, Claudia wanted to do something worthwhile with her spare time. She found the Whitechapel Centre, and very quickly became involved with sorting and packing food and sleeping parcels.

"Claudia became the 'poster girl' for the charity, appearing on their website and Instagram pages when donations had been made.

"She loved being able to make a difference to people less fortunate than herself."

The Whitechapel Centre has described how staff were "devastated", adding she would leave behind a "legacy of care, dedication and enthusiasm".

Following her death, Claudia's family decided to raise money on behalf of both charities "in loving memory of our beautiful daughter and incredible sister, Claudia."

The response has been extraordinary.

At time of writing over £21,000 has been donated via Just Giving in just a few days.

If you wish to contribute, please click or tap here...

where you will find Tina Marsh's message of gratitude:

"Just want to say a huge thank you to everyone who has donated so far. We are truly overwhelmed by the generosity of people, especially given these difficult times that we are living in. The messages of support, and the affection shown towards Claudia has really helped us through the dark days. She would have been blown away and had THE biggest smile on her face!"