The plight of an ill baby was the spur for a West Dorset woman to organise a fundraiser in 10 days.

The day after her own grandchild’s christening, Pauline Bale, from Highway Farm, Bridport, raised more than £1,000 at a ‘Bake it Better’ sale in aid of Great Ormond Street Hospital, where 14-week-old Edie Shewry has had her life-saving operations.

Mrs Bale said: “Edie is the daughter of a friend of my daughter Lucy and she is having on-going treatment at Great Ormond Street Hospital.

“The family all came along with baby Edie to the tea party and we all got to see and hold little Edie and I think it just touched people’s hearts.

“Twice they have flown her from Southampton to great Or-mond Street. The National Health Service is amazing, they flew her up to Glasgow when the only surgeon available was there.

“I just saw that Great Ormond Street were doing Bake it Better and I thought I could do that and all my friends could make a cake and they did.”

Edie’s grandmother Trudy Cox, from Clapton, said Edie’s condition was called the Vein of Galen malformation and only around 10 children are diagnosed each year.

“It is a problem with a vein deep in the brain. The blood is going around the body far too quickly and they have to go in through the groin and send a wire right into the brain and shut off these feeder veins feeding the Vein of Gallon so that reduces the blood around the body.

“Edie had heart failure at nine days old. She was admitted to Yeovil and for over a day they couldn’t understand what was wrong with her.

“They did an echo on her heart and a Polish doctor decided to stick it on her head and they realised something was very wrong deep in the brain.”

Edie was then airlifted to the London hospital. She has already had three operations and is due for another in November.

Mrs Cox added: “I think Pauline is marvellous to raise so much money.”

Pauline said: “There were so many wonderful cakes and puddings, so much kindness and support.”

Pauline is also going to donate some money to a mother and baby clinic in Malawi.

Pauline has raised nearly £50,000 for Cancer Research, Breakthrough, Prostate Cancer and Joseph Weld since 2008.

She is also in her sixth year holding Christmas workshops making Christmas wreaths, which will all be for sale.

To contribute to Pauline’s Great Ormond Street fundraising, contact her on 01308 424321.