A HUSBAND whose wife lost their baby during pregnancy is organising a football tournament in aid of a charity that supports bereaved parents and their families.

Elliott Horan is raising money for the stillbirth and neonatal death charity SANDS after heartbreak struck him and wife Lucy in January when she was 12 weeks pregnant.

The tragedy happened when Mr Horan was planning a charity 11-a-side football match which raised more than £2,000 for the Bradford Burns Unit, the Bradford City Foundation and the Yorkshire Children's Trust.

That game saw a team from UKAR in Bingley, where Mr Horan works, take on opponents from ACS Business Supplies, also based in Bingley.

Now, Mr Horan has a seven-a-side competition lined up to take place at Beckfoot School in June and he wants to hear from people interested in entering a team.

"During planning this game (UKAR v ACS) in January, me and my wife lost our baby," said Mr Horan. "I nearly backed out of playing or being part of this event that I had spent months organising and being part of.

"However, being so busy with the event and helping people actually took my mind off the tragic circumstances and I used the hectic workload to help with the grieving process.

"I knew this event wasn't going to keep my mind off things forever, and so did my wife, but it was positively helping me get over the news.

"My wife saw the amount of effort and passion I'd put into the previous fundraiser and suggested I created another event, but for SANDS, as they helped us after our loss. So I decided to get my fundraising self back into action and set up an event."

The tournament will take place at the Beckfoot School in Bingley on June 25 between 9am and 2pm, and there will be medals, certificates and a cup for the winners.

Mr Horan said: "Beckfoot School was happy to accommodate as they had an adequate amount of pitches for us to have multiple games being played at the same time. I then decided on a 16-team tournament and everyone playing for one cup and one charity.

"I then applied and spoke with SANDS to see whether they would be happy to help or accept our fundraising event. They happily obliged and have helped me with donation tins, posters and various other things."

It costs £50 per team to enter and each team can have a squad of up to ten players. The competition is open to men and women.

Mr Horan is looking for volunteers to be referees, first aiders and general helpers. He would also love to hear from a local celebrity or footballer who could present medals to the winners.

Anyone interested in volunteering, or in entering a team, can email bingleycharitycup@gmail.com or search for Bingley Charity Cup on Facebook.

After the tournament, there will be a gathering at a venue for the presentation, food and a raffle. Prizes in the raffle include Bradford City tickets. Any businesses or people that want to donate raffle prizes can email bingleycharitycup@gmail.com.