A KNUTSFORD teenager is loving life in a brand new 'physio suit' thanks to the generosity of the town's residents.

Georgie Bancroft, 17, lives with her mum Lindsay, dad Stuart and younger brother Harry in Heathfield Square, Knutsford.

In November 2012, her kind-hearted neighbours decided to raise money for her so she could buy a new therapy suit.

Georgie, who attends Park Lane School in Macclesfield, needed a new suit because she had outgrown her old one and due to funding cuts, her parents had been told it is up to them to buy a new one.

The suit, which acts as a second skin as an alternative to physiotherapy, was expected to cost £1,000.

And Georgie, who has had cerebral palsy since birth, got hold of her new suit for the first time in a special handover held at Egerton Youth Club.

The suit, bought from Cornwall-based DM Orthotics, cost more than £700.

Jacqui Garvey, who helped raise the funds, told the Guardian the suit had already started to make a difference to the youngster.

"Georgie is now a lot more steady and has a lot more control of her muscles," she said.

"Before she didn't have control of her movements, her hands and legs especially, but this suit helps her to control her muscles and she should be able to hold a cup and feed herself, which will give her more independence.

"She can't walk unaided at the moment but hopefully in the future this will allow her to walk as well."

A range of activities have been helped to buy the suit for Georgie including jewellery parties, discos and residents collecting spare change in jars.

Pupils at Knutsford Academy also got involved by holding collections and staging a rugby match, which raised £400 for the cause.

Jacqui added that money left over from the fundraising would be donated to Georgie's school.