THE beaming face of Vicki Jones said it all for her family, when the young leukaemia sufferer arrived at EuroDisney.

The Jones family, of Waldridge, near Chester-le-Street, County Durham, have now returned home, after a dream holiday provided for the five-year-old by readers of The Northern Echo.

The family arrived in France on Monday last week, after spending a few days in Leeds with nurses Andrea Marchant and Mary Appleton. The women run Batti About Kidz, a charity that took Vicki and other seriously ill children to France in a specially-equipped "Jumbulance".

The holiday had looked in doubt when an organisation that had pledged to raise money for the trip disappeared.

The Charity Commission and West Yorkshire police said this week they were still investigating the unregistered charity, Phoenix Cancer Care for Kids, which gave its address as Dudley Hill, Bradford.

Meanwhile, Vicki's family are delighted by the lift the holiday has given her.

Her father, Bryan, said: "It's given Vicki such a boost. I would just like to thank all The Northern Echo readers who donated money.

"We've sent cards already to people we had addresses for, just to let them know we'd got there safely, but some people wanted to remain anonymous. So I'd just like to thank them. They know who they are."

Mr Jones said the week's break was something the family would remember for the rest of their lives. It was like a dream from start to finish.

"I was in tears half the time, I don't mind admitting.

"It was so nice to see Vicki's face because she had been waiting for so long. She didn't want to come home - none of us did."

People are still raising money for Vicki, so she can return to EuroDisney when her treatment has finished.

One of the more unusual fundraising events is a charity night being organised by two strippers in Peterlee, on a date to be announced.