The co-founder of a retirement advice firm is aiming to highlight the plight of those who suffer from the potentially life-threatening disease, which afflicts his young daughter.

Jamie Smith-Thompson, managing director of Portal Financial, has been raising cash for type 1 diabetes, inspired by his daughter Isla, 6, and has explained how major funding is needed to find a cure.

About 400,000 people in the UK live with type 1 diabetes and 29,000 are children. They rely on multiple insulin injections or pump infusions every day just to carry on with their lives.

Type 1 diabetes is a chronic, life-threatening autoimmune condition that has a life-long impact on those diagnosed with it and their families.

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Mr Smith-Thompson’s Kent-based firm has raised over £12,000 for the cause since 2010, with much of this going to the type 1 diabetes charity JDRF.

He said: “My six-year-old daughter has type 1 diabetes so raising awareness about the condition is very personal to me. As an autoimmune condition, type 1 diabetes is not caused or cured by diet or lack of exercise, and serious funding is needed to try and find a cure for it.”

The former financial adviser said: “Portal Financial fundraises for JDRF whenever we can and so far we have donated over £3,500.”

JDRF exists to find the cure for type 1 diabetes - which is not linked to lifestyle factors such as diet and exercise.

Portal’s Claudia Hill will run the London Marathon to raise at least another £2,000 for JDRF.

She said: “When I met Jamie’s daughter at company fundraisers I realised how the condition affects real people. That encouraged me to try to help others in the same position.”

Sue Perrin, regional fundraiser at JDRF praised Portal’s “terrific example” in raising cash for the charity.

She said: “We are honoured to have consistently received donations from the firm which support vital type 1 diabetes research. A big thank you to all at Portal.”