A 9-YEAR-OLD pupil from Rendcomb College has spent his summer raising money for the victims of the Grenfell Tower fire disaster.

Year 5 pupil Reuben Parker has been busy contributing to the British Red Cross Grenfell Tower relief fund by taking part in an Aquathlon at his local pool, the Sandford Parks Lido in Cheltenham and baking and selling cupcakes and brownies.

While not a regular swimmer, Reuben swam a total of 100m and ran 1300m raising a grand total of £367 for the charity, exceeding his target of £300.

He said: “It was really fun and really tough but when I got stuck I just swapped to backstroke and I was fine!”

“I’d love to do it again, I’m sure I’ll plan something else in the future.”

Reuben’s mother, Sarah, has been working directly with the families and communities affected by the fire, including setting up the family and friends rest centres for bereaved families, which has provided much needed emotional support and counselling to Grenfell residents’ families who suffered the loss of loved ones.

Sarah said of her sons achievements: “Reuben has seen me at home in tears on a few occasions, so his motivation was very genuine.

“It was his first event and he’s not the strongest of swimmers so it was quite an achievement for him.”

Gavin Roberts, head of juniors at Rendcomb College, said: “Reuben has shown great compassion and determination to achieve his fundraising goals.

"At Rendcomb College our mission is for our pupils to be thoughtful, adventurous and ambitious both in and out of the classroom and Reuben has shown all of these characteristics in his charitable activities. Well done!”