IT'S probably the most expensive dress you are likely to buy - and you wear it only once!

But a group of York friends is giving brides the chance to wear their wedding dresses again - and raise money to help young cancer sufferer Jennifer Pickering at the same time.

Jennifer, four, of Haxby, York, suffers from neuroblastoma cancer, an illness which is almost exclusively found in young children. Growths arise in nerve cells, which run in a chain down the back of the chest and abdomen.

Jennifer, who has undergone chemotherapy, has a 70 per cent chance of recovery.

Money raised from the wedding dress ball at York Racecourse will be used to give Jennifer and her family a much-needed holiday. The remainder will be put towards research into treatments and cures for neuroblastoma cancer.

Emma Wykes, of Wigginton, who is helping to organise the event with friends Deborah Gardner, of Haxby, and Nikki Hassett, said: "Originally, we planned to have a small party with about ten friends who were really keen on the idea of dressing up in their wedding regalia once again. But they talked to their friends, who talked to their friends and before we knew it there were at least 50 people interested... a few too many to fit it in anyone's dining room!

"So, we decided to organise a ball where women could wear their wedding dresses (or ball gowns) and the men could dress up formally, arrange a venue that could hold about 300 people and raise money for a worthy cause whilst we were at it."

Tickets for the September 18 event, to be held in the Ebor Stand at the racecourse, are £40 per head, inclusive of a five-course meal and entertainment by York band Phatt. There will also be a raffle, with prizes donated by York firms.

For more information, click on to www. weddingdressball.com, or for tickets/raffle prizes and sponsorship, email info@weddingdressball.com, or phone Emma on 01904 766862.

Updated: 16:16 Tuesday, May 25, 2004