A HEROIC nine-year-old who saved his mum’s life by steering her car to safety when she had a seizure on the A120 has made the shortlist of a prestigious national award.

Ben Hedger was in the car on his way home to Colchester in December when his mum Lauren Smith began shaking with her hands still gripped to the steering wheel of her Ford Ka.

Travelling at around 60 mph, the vehicle hit into the central reservation of the busy dual carriageway near the Ardleigh interchange.

Ms Smith had blacked out and the car was spinning out of control, but amazingly Ben took control.

The youngster, who goes to Chase Lane Primary School in Dovercourt, leaned over his paralysed mum, grabbed the steering wheel and put the car’s hazard lights on.

He steered the vehicle into the hard shoulder, bringing it safely to a halt before help arrived.

For his incredible actions, Ben has made the final ten of a 50 person long list for the Young Hero Award at the Amplifon Awards For Brave Britons.

The prestigious awards celebrate the achievements of exceptional people living across the UK.

Ms Smith said: “Sometimes I forget about what happened but then it comes back to me and I realise again how amazing it was.

“He had never seen me have a seizure before because I had never had one before.

“For him to see what was going on and realise the impact of the situation was incredible. He needed to think so quickly and he did more than most adults could have done.

“I am so proud of him and I think actually he deserves to be recognised.”

After the incident Ben became a household name in the national media.

Ms Smith said: “At first he was confused as to why he was getting all this attention, he only thought he did what he needed to do.

“For his age he is mature and humble. He doesn’t realise sometimes he has done some really amazing things. He just does them because it is his natural reaction.”

The shortlist for the award will be narrowed down to four names before the winner is selected by a panel of judges, including Falklands War hero Simon Weston, and crowned at a ceremony in October.