A 12-YEAR-OLD York boy has climbed Ben Nevis in memory of his father and two brothers, all of whom he lost to brain tumours.

Lucas Hughes and his mother Marie joined 35 other climbers who scaled Britain's highest peak to raise funds for the charity set up in memory of Lucas' brother, Oscar, his father Ian and little brother Milo.

The four and a half hour slog up the mountain came on Sunday, just two days before the eighth anniversary of Oscar’s death.

Conditions at the top were so snowy and icy that participants took to sliding down a short section of the downhill journey as if they were sledging. The youngest climber was Riley Brooks, aged just 5, who was a friend of Milo.

Marie, who celebrated an incredibly emotional day with champagne at the summit, said it was the toughest challenge she had ever done. "Every step was hard," she said.

"The whole day was so emotional. We walked for Ian, Oscar and Milo knowing how much they would all have loved it.

"Milo would have made us all laugh and distracted us from the constant walking over the rocks.

"Oscar would have run ahead of us and would definitely have been first to the top. And Ian would have had the best day with all his friends enjoying being in the mountains.

"We’re so grateful for all the support we’ve had - it means so much to Lucas, Sebastian and I.”

Marie, who lost her son Oscar in 2014, husband Ian in 2020 and youngest son Milo the year after, set up OSCAR’s Paediatric Brain Tumour Charity after Oscar's death.

The climbers' fundraising total climbed as much as they did during the, starting the day at £7,000 and reaching £12,500 by Sunday evening.

OSCAR’s PBTC aims to fund support and care for children with brain tumours, raise awareness and fund research into better treatments.

Donations can be given by going to www.justgiving.com/fundraising/marie-lucas-ben-nevis2022.