An Earls Colne couple has raised more than £4,000 in memory of their six-month-old son.

Melanie Flynn Haddon, 45, who teaches at Gosfield School, and husband Peter, 45, who is deputy head at the school, are raising money for two charities after their son died in 2002.

Melanie said: "Our precious son was born with a heart condition called hyperplastic left heart syndrome with a double outlet right ventricle.

“He was a brave little man who also caught ecoli meningitis and had a bleed on his brain.

“Despite this, he developed as a normal baby until he underwent heart surgery at nearly six months old.

“Sadly he never came out of the operation.

"His heart couldn't be fixed and our hearts were broken.

“Echo are a charity for children in the same hospital as Thomas, with severe heart conditions and they supported us through this difficult time."

The couple have two children Isabella, ten, and seven-year-old Edward.