Thousands of pounds will be donated to a Marlborough charity after an appeal in memory of Eloise Jackson.

Eloise died on July 13 as she cycled near her home in Collingbourne Ducis.

She was involved in a crash with a lorry that had been driving on the A338 near the village.

Eloise was described as a “beautiful, kind and fun loving little girl” who was well known and loved in the village community and her school.

Family friend Chris Dale launched a fundraiser in the seven-year-old’s name, with more than £13,000 raised as of this week.

The money will go toward Greatwood, a charity based near Marlborough.

The charity houses former racehorses and provides alternative education for children from across the country.

Greatwood was also the first charity to use former racehorses to educate disadvantaged children and young adults with special educational needs (SEN).

In response to the huge levels of support, parents Laura and James, and Eloise’s older sister Anaiis, released the following statement:

“We cannot thank you enough, our wonderful friends, family and the community for supporting us through this terrible time.

“You are helping to create a legacy for Eloise that she would have been incredibly proud of.

“She loves, and still loves her pony, horses are a fundamental part of her existence.

“Therefore, as a family we have decided to donate the money to Greatwood, a charity which uses former racehorses to educate disadvantaged children and young adults with special educational needs.

“Eloise hated the thought of anyone struggling and found great comfort being around horses.”

Helen Yeadon, who founded and runs Greatwood, said she hoped the charity could use some of the money to renovate a currently overgrown garden in Eloise’s memory.

She said: “It is in need of some TLC. The design of it is still there but it could be more vibrant. So it occurred to me that to bring it back together again, and to make a lasting tribute for Eloise and her family, could be a good idea.

“It looks over the racehorses and it could be advantageous to other people in the local community. There’s a lot of opportunities now that so much money has generously been raised for us.”

Earlier this week, mum Laura told BBC Radio Wiltshire: “It’s just so fantastic. It’s going to cost them about £600,000 a year just to keep running because they’ve got racehorses, chickens, three Shetland ponies. It’s just absolutely wonderful.

“We visited with my parents and my daughter and we were all speechless. [We thought]this is it, this is the place we want the money to go. It’s peaceful and we’re looking at a permanent memorial for Eloise [at Greatwood].”