A YOUNG man who was left paralysed after car crash is to marry the girl who has stood by him.

Noel Thomas, 20, from Redcar, was about to gain his first promotion in the Royal Navy when he was involved in an horrific crash at a notorious east Cleveland accident blackspot, Pitt Park Corner, between Skelton and Guisborough.

The crash, nine months ago, left Noel with a broken neck and he was paralysed from the chest down.

But he has refused to let his disabilities stop him getting on with life and has developed his own code - improvise, adapt and overcome - to help him through. His determination and sense of humour have helped carry him through, along with the support of his girlfriend Amy Thompson, with whom he lives in a specially adapted house in her home town of Berwick-upon-Tweed.

Noel asked Amy to marry him a week before her 18th birthday and to his delight she agreed.

Noel's family on Teesside are delighted with the engagement and with the progress he has made since the accident.

His parents, Jeff and Karen, have launched an appeal fund to finance Noel's future. Anyone can send donations to The Noel Thomas Appeal Fund, The Yorkshire Bank, 23-25 Station Road, Redcar, TS10 1AN.