Last Christmas, Santa received a letter from a little girl whose only wish was that she could walk – a year later, it appears that wish may come true.

Paige Stewart has cerebral palsy, struggles to stand on her own and needs a frame to get around but a date has now been set for the operation that could change her life forever.

Her mum Julie Stewart, from Rainham, said: “This year the letter is so different. This year she wants a doll and Frozen things and normal little girl stuff. She says to me now ‘when I walk can I have a Frozen bike?’.

“She really does believe that Father Christmas did listen to her. She’s feeling excited about everything but she’s quite nervous, it’s a lot to take on.

“Next week the five-year-old from Rainham will fly to Missouri where she will undergo selective dorsal rhizotomy surgery – which improves muscle stiffness – at St Louis Children’s Hospital on January 5.

Paige and her mother will remain in America for a month with a muscle lengthening operation due to take place on January 14.

A campaign started by her parents, Julie and David, and backed by the Medway Messenger, raised £45,000 to pay for the surgery. People from all over the Towns supported the appeal through raffles, auctions, a five-mile walk, chest waxes and hair cuts, with one anonymous donor giving £20,000.

Mrs Stewart said if they hadn’t started raising money last year, Paige could be facing life in a wheelchair.

She added: “She’s deteriorated a lot since she walked on her own at the fundraising walk in the summer. Now she struggles to even do any length of walking, the muscles in her ankles are so tight.”

The fundraising will continue when Paige returns to the UK at the end of January as she will need up to four private physiotherapy sessions a week as well as equipment such as a treadmill and balance beams to help her become stronger and walk on her own.

Follow Paige on www.facebook.com/paigestewartappeal