TWO sisters from Burnley have run a mile in support of their mother, who had open heart surgery shortly after they were both born.

Lilly-May Austin, now nine, and Evie-Leigh Austin, seven, ran four laps of Barden running track in Burnley to raise money for the British Heart Foundation.

So far the girls have raised £133 with the help of Burnley Athletics Club, who donated the track for the sisters to use.

They wanted to raise money for the charity as their mother Sarah May Austin, 29, from Burnley, was told while she was pregnant with her oldest child she suffered from a condition known as partial anomalous pulmonary venous drainage.

The condition means there is an unbalanced division of the arteries on both sides of the heart, causing an uneven distribution of blood, resulting in her lungs not receiving an adequate supply.

She had surgery just three months after the birth of Evie Leigh, but after a long road to recovery has been given the all clear.

She said: “I couldn’t lift any weight after the operation in order to let my ribs heal.

“I wanted to bond with my baby and look after her, but I couldn’t even lift her. I didn’t like not being able to cuddle her.”

People can still donate by visiting www.justgiving.com/Evie-LeighLilly-May.