Dale Hougton: Bradley Lowery Foundation reacts to Sheffield Wednesday fan's suspended sentence

A charity set up in Bradley Lowery's name following his death said it hopes lessons are learnt from the sentence and that 'there are some things you just don't joke about'.

On November 17, Dale Houghton, from Wickersley, Rotherham, was sentenced at Sheffield Magistrates' Court after he caused outrage when he used a photo of a young cancer victim to taunt rival fans at a football match.

Houghton, a Sheffield Wednesday fan, showed a photo of six-year-old Bradley Lowery to Sunderland United fans when both teams met at Hillsborough earlier in the football season.

Bradley was a much-loved Sunderland mascot but lost his cancer battle at the age of six.

Houghton, 32, was sentenced to 12 weeks’ custody, suspended for 18 months. He also received a five-year football banning order, and must complete 200 hours of unpaid work.

Lynn Murphy, the Bradley Lowery Foundation's chief operations officer, said: "The judge knows what they're doing. There was a lot of backlash on social media, some of it unnecessary.

"From our perspective, we want to put the whole sorry mess behind us.

"Sheffield Wednesday fans and the women's club set up a fundraising page and raised more than £20,000 for our holiday home, so something positive came out of an horrendous situation.

"For us, we hope that lessons are learnt. Bradley represents all children with childhood cancer and there are some things you just don't joke about."

The Bradley Lowery Foundation, set up after the youngster's death to support families of children with cancer, praised Sheffield Wednesday fans for how they rallied after the incident.

Fans of the club set up a fundraising page which saw thousands donated to the charity, which will help fund its holiday home for families to spend time making memories, having fun and enjoying every moment together.

The charity said it wanted to 'move on' after Houghton was sentenced in Sheffield.