An eight-year-old entrepreneur was among the stars of this year’s Franklins Solicitors £50 Challenge, which has raised £50,243 for local charities across Northamptonshire and Milton Keynes.

The fundraising total was announced at the annual £50 Challenge Awards, where 56 teams were recognised for transforming an initial £50 investment from Franklins Solicitors into vital funds for 12 local charities.

The Young Entrepreneur Award was presented to Woo Reviews, whose founder Woo, aged just eight, impressed judges with her creativity, determination and entrepreneurial spirit. Her fundraising efforts raised £910 and included organising a street food festival, Woo Fest, attended by more than 500 people.

Woo commented: ‘‘I feel really happy to have won Young Entrepreneur. I used the £50 to print out my posters to promote Woo Fest. I enjoyed getting involved in the challenge because I know the money will go to do something useful and help people.’

The overall fundraising award was won by Footsteps Travel UK Ltd, which raised £4,518 for their chosen charity.

Commenting on winning, Andrea Fountain from Footsteps travel said: “To win The Highest Fundraiser is absolutely fantastic. We’ve had great fun, raised an amazing amount of money and been overwhelmed by the support from our clients and the wider community. It’s been wonderful to bring people together for such a worthwhile cause.”

The awards were presented by businessman and broadcaster Nick Hewer, best known for his role as Lord Sugar’s advisor on The Apprentice.

This year’s challenge supported 12 local charities, including The Lewis Foundation, Cynthia Spencer Hospice, Northampton Hope Centre, Rainbows Hospice and Medical Detection Dogs.

The Lewis Foundation had the highest number of fundraising teams supporting its cause, with those teams collectively raising almost £20,000 to help provide support and gift packs for adult cancer patients undergoing treatment in hospital.

Commenting on the challenge, Lorraine Lewis, from The Lewis Foundation said: ‘The Challenge offers a unique way to raise funds and get the community involved rather than traditional fundraising. It costs £3.60 to provide a gift pack so with the amount raised, there’s going to be lots of people we can support through a really dark time.’

Andrea Smith, Equity Partner at Franklins Solicitors, said:

“The £50 Challenge continues to demonstrate what can be achieved when people combine creativity, determination and community spirit. Every team should be incredibly proud of what they have accomplished. Together they have raised an amazing amount for local charities while developing new skills and bringing people together for a fantastic cause.”

Now in its eighth year, the challenge has raised more than £243,000 for local charities since it was launched by Franklins Solicitors in 2018.