THE parents of a toddler who died in his sleep are aiming to raise thousands of pounds in his memory to fund research.

Frankie Grogan, a pupil at Cobbs Infant and Nursery School in Appleton, was found unresponsive in bed by his parents in May.

The happy and healthy youngster was only three years old.

His parents Sarah and James created Friends of Frankie, a charity which hopes to fund research into sudden unexplained death in childhood.

Sarah, who is a teacher at Cobbs Infant and Nursery School and her husband James want to prevent other families going through the trauma they have.

On the evening of May 18, Frankie was put to bed as normal but the next morning he could not be woken.

He was rushed to Alder Hey Children's Hospital but could not be saved.

Both Frankie and his parents spent time in the bereavement centre at the hospital and the care Sarah and James continue to receive from the hospital they describe as 'incredible'.

Since the creation of Friends of Frankie, £10,000 has been raised for the Alder Hey bereavement centre which provides emotional and practical support for parents who find themselves in the horrific circumstance of losing a child.

Sarah and James, who live in Altrincham, were left with many unanswered questions - how can this happen? Why does this happen? How can we stop it happening to other children?

They said: "We heartbreakingly can't change what happened to Frankie, but we are determined that he can change things going forward.

"We know that Frankie's legacy is to save other children.

"Our fundraising now moves towards funding research into this through the charity SUDC UK."

Frankie's legacy also lives on through the charity's motto, 'Stand tall, aim high, be kind'.

The Friends of Frankie Ball takes place on Saturday at Bowdon Rugby Club, Altrincham and his family hope this will become an annual fundraising event.

If you have any queries or would like to donate, get in touch Friends of Frankie via email at friendsoffrankie19@outlook.com or on the Friends of Frankie Facebook page.