A SCHOOLBOY teamed up with a friend to raise hundreds pounds for a hospital which is close to his heart.

Ethan Taylor, 11, went for a Sunday stroll with his school chum and raised more than £400 for the Royal Marsden cancer hospital.

Ethan was determined to thank the world famous London hospital for looking after his nana Lesley Nickless, who is being treated for Acute Myeloid Leukaemia.

Lesley, 69, a retired nurse, recently underwent a successful stem-cell transplant in Sutton and is now recovering well at her home in Littledown.

Ethan’s aim was to raise £50 from his 5k walk in the New Forest with the help of his school friend, Sebi Robinson, 12, but eight eight times that amount.

“I cannot believe how much money we raised and I would like to thank everyone for being so kind-I know it made my nana very happy,” said Ethan, who attends Ringwood School.

Lesley said: “I am so very proud of Ethan for coming up with this thoughtful idea to raise money for a hospital that does such wonderful work treating cancer patients.

“And I would also like to thank Sebi, his family, and all the very kind donors for supporting my grandson in raising such a large amount of money for the Royal Marsden Cancer Charity.”

For more information about the charity, visit royalmarsden.org