Parents of a baby born with a hole in his heart have pledged to support families with similar problems.

Identical twin Alfie Paton is making excellent progress after major surgery when he was just six months old.

Doctors had no other option than operating on him to mend the potentially life-threatening defect.

Alfie, one, is now gaining weight and catching up with his brother Charlie.

Damian and Nicola Paton, of Brighton, said his recovery had been a huge relief.

They now want to help others by fundraising for the charity which looked after them.

Mr Paton, 35, is running the London Marathon on April 22 for children's heart charity Echo.

He has taken part in the event before but said this year would be extra special.

Mr Paton said: "Because of Alfie this is the first time I've ever felt a connection with what I'm raising money for.

"Echo helped us so much by providing support, information and putting us in touch with others who had been through it so we knew we weren't alone."

Echo provided chill-out rooms for families at the Evelina Hospital, part of St Thomas's Hospital in London, where Alfie was treated.

Doctors detected a problem with Alfie's heart during a pre-natal scan at 20 weeks.

They found he had a small to medium size hole in a heart ventricle and would need surgery to have a good quality of life.

Without the operation, Alfie would not have grown properly, been dangerously short of breath and could have died.

Surgeons waited until he was six months to operate because it would have been risky any earlier.

Mrs Paton, 34, said: "Children with heart conditions like Alfie's don't grow very well and for the first four weeks we were very worried about him.

"Charlie was getting bigger and putting on weight but Alfie was still small and weak.

"It was quite an isolating time because I couldn't take Alfie out for a month before his operation in case he caught an infection.

"It was terrifying having to hand him over for such a big operation and not having any choice about it.

"Having a new baby is a scary anyway let alone having a twin with a heart condition and Echo was really good in helping us through it.

"Alfie is doing really well now and we are just living a different life. It's such a huge relief."

Mrs Paton is a teacher at Hoddern Junior School in Peacehaven and her pupils have been raising money for the charity.

They made £400 from collections at their Christmas concert and fairground-style games.

The Paton's have so far collected £2,500 for Echo.

Anyone wanting to give money should visit www.justgiving.com/damianpaton