Pupils at Dunottar Girls' School in Reigate ran over Redhill Common in a blaze of fancy dress colour to raise funds for a charity close to their hearts.

The Year Eight pupils were taking part in a whirl of money-raising activities in aid of the Group B Strep Support cause.

The girls decided to raise funds for the charity after one of their fellow pupils, whose baby sister died as a result of Group B streptococcus (GBS) infection, gave a moving presentation on the cause's work.

The girls organised events including cake and sweet sales, a prize draw and raffle, as well as the fancy dress fun run around the school grounds and Redhill Common.

They raised £1,380 for the charity.

Pupil Maddy Castrey said: “The fun run was great. We all ran screaming over Redhill Common fully dressed up.

“The dog walkers stared in amazement as they saw running past them a pumpkin, a bear, lots of fairies and a nurse with an afro.

“We all really enjoyed ourselves at the same time as doing something to help save babies’ lives.”

Form teacher Julie Boden said the charity had struck a chord with the girls.

“It struck a chord as it was so personal and they wanted to support their friend,” she said.

“The same year group raised over £2,000 last year for the NSPCC.

“They have raised an amazing amount of money and we’re very proud of them for all the effort and hard work they’ve put into it.”

GBS is the most common cause of life-threatening infections in newborn babies in the UK.

Without preventative medicine, GBS infects around 700 babies each year, of whom sadly 75 or so die, and around 40 survivors suffer long-term problems as a result.