A CARING son has raised more than £2,000 for a cause that's close to his heart.

For 38-year-old Colin Leyland, whose mother is partially sighted, raised the money for the National Association of Guide Dogs by completing this year's London Marathon in 4 hours and 30 minutes.

Colin's efforts, and a series of raffles and car boot sales, realised a grand total of £2, 750 for the charity, including £350 in direct donations.

He said: "Although I had I trained for about seven years for the race, I didn't think I'd be able to take part because of an ankle operation. The the first 18 miles or so weren't too bad but I did struggle over the last few miles".

And Colin would like to thank his family, friends, work colleagues at St Helens Council for their support, as well as everyone else who chipped in.