A MOLD schoolgirl who moved doctors and nurses to tears when she wrote a song to say thank you for looking after her is to star at a concert in aid of a child safety centre.

Gracie Mellalieu, 12, who has an extremely rare condition called Morquio syndrome which affects only 3,000 people worldwide, was over the moon to be among the headline acts at the annual Christmas concert to raise money for the Talacre-based centre, DangerPoint at St Asaph Cathedral on December 13.

She will be sharing top billing with a quartet from NEW Sinfonia, the flagship orchestra of North Wales, and also on the programme will be the acclaimed Chester choir Dee-Sign which performs in British Sign Language.

The annual event in the run up to Christmas is one of the biggest fundraisers for DangerPoint. Over the last two years the concerts have netted a combined total of more than £3,000 to support its award-winning work.

Gracie celebrates her 13th birthday just a few weeks earlier, on November 23, and says doing the gig is the best way ever to start her teen years.

She is one of the biggest fans of DangerPoint, an innovative activity centre near Talacre beach, which educates more than 7,000 young people a year about ways to stay safe.

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Gracie Mellalieu pictured with mum Yvette

It is Gracie’s favourite place to go for a day out.

“I love it there. I’ve been about 10 times. I’d go every week if I could,” she laughed. “It’s just brilliant that they asked me to help them fundraise.”

Gracie, of Mynydd Isa, near Mold, is the only child in Wales diagnosed with Morquio Syndrome – an inherited disease which attacks the metabolism.

Her condition causes intense pain in her joints, muscles and back, and it can restrict her breathing. It affects only about 3,000 people worldwide and means she cannot produce the enzymes needed to break down materials her body cannot use. She relies on cutting edge drug therapy to help her.

Despite the seriousness of her health setbacks Gracie, supported by mum Yvette and dad Jonathan, is determined to lead as normal a life as possible, particularly when it comes to pursuing her love of music.

She has written her own songs since an early age, including one she penned aged nine as a thank you to medical staff at Wrexham Maelor Hospital. It reduced doctors and nurses to tears.

She won rapturous applause singing before more than 500 people at Mold carnival, and her enchanting voice was praised by the late superstar Ken Dodd at Theatr Clwyd, Mold.

A pupil of Argoed High School, she has achieved grades one and two in her singing tuition, and she uses her iPad to help her compose.

Gracie plans to sing two festive numbers, the carol Away in a Manger, and the hit It’s Not Christmas Without You from TV show Victorious.

She is pleased to share the bill with a classical quartet from the orchestra NEW Sinfonia, which was co-founded by brothers Robert and Jonathan Guy, who hail from Wrexham.

They grew up in Wrexham, gaining musical inspiration from their piano teacher grandmother Doreen Monslow, now 90.

It will be the third year a NEW Sinfonia quartet has performed at the yearly concert.

Conductor and viola player Robert and clarinetist Jonathan will be in the quartet along with Jonathan’s wife, violinist Catherine who has just landed a place with the world-famous Manchester Camarata orchestra. Meanwhile, the Russian cellist Svetlana Mochalova, a close friend, will complete the quartet.

Tickets for the December 13 concert are available in advance by emailing bookings@dangerpoint.org.uk or calling DangerPoint on 01745 850414.