A Darlington youngster who overcame arthritis ran the Junior Great North Run on his birthday to raise money for charity.

Elliott Snowball was 13 on Saturday and decided to take part in the run to raise money for the Parkinson's Disease Society in a bid to help his neighbour who suffers from the disease.

Elliott's decision to take part in the run was all the more remarkable considering he had arthritis when he was younger and was in a wheelchair.

He was discharged from hospital 18 months ago after overcoming the condition and is now able to take part in physical activities such as skateboarding.

His mother, Jan Crow, who has a brain tumour, also walked the 13-mile Great North Run on Sunday.

She said: "We had a lovely weekend. Elliott just loved his run. He's so proud of himself. The weather was dreadful but that didn't stop him.

"He is such a caring lad and he decided to do the run to help our neighbour Karen who has Parkinson's disease. It took him 27 minutes and 27 seconds and he raised about £200.

"It was also his 13th birthday which added to the celebrations. He has now joined the athletics club at school and he has received a progress in PE award.

"I walked the Great North Run the following day and really enjoyed it. It took me three hours and 50 minutes which was faster than I thought it would take."

Hotel approval

PLANS to expand a Darlington hotel have been approved by Darlington Council's planning committee.

On Wednesday, permission to build 15 bedrooms and new function suite at the grade II-listed Grange Hotel in Southend Avenue was granted.

The work will be the third major expansion to the building in recent years and will bring the number of rooms to 61.