A school boy from Solihull has been named as this week’s Charity Champion after getting his skates on and raising over £740 for Birmingham Children’s Hospital Charity.

After receiving a pair of shiny new roller skates for Christmas, six-year-old Jesse Pullin wasted no time in trying to master his ‘new set of wheels.’ Following a couple of months’ practise in the local park with dad, Ant, and a few falls and scrapes, he decided he was ready for a challenge.

On one of his practise routes in Tudor Grange Park, Jesse clocked a 1km figure-of-eight circuit and boldly announced to his dad that he was going to skate the circuit at least 11 times. Ant admired Jesse’s ambition but thought he ought to manage his son’s expectations, haggling him down to a challenging 10km route, and suggested using his challenge to raise some money.

Having got wind of Jesse’s challenge on his return home, mum Elaine suggested Jesse raise money to thank the brilliant doctors and nurses at Birmingham Children’s Hospital, who looked after him so well when he was a baby.

When Jesse was just one day old he was blue-lighted to Birmingham Children’s Hospital. Jesse couldn’t keep his milk down and scans at the hospital where he was born showed a twist in his intestine, causing a blockage. Jesse needed urgent surgery to fix the problem and was put on intravenous drips to make sure he was getting all of the nutrients he needed until his operation at three days old.

It was a distressing time for first-time parents, Ant and Elaine, but they knew their baby was in good hands, and after three hours in surgery, Jesse was returned to the ward to recover. In the two weeks that followed, nurses guided Ant and Elaine through Jesse’s recovery, until they were able to take him home for the very first time.

Six years later, a fit and well Jesse beamed from ear to ear as he set off on his 10k roller skating challenge for his hospital, followed closely by Ant on a scooter!

Ant said: “Jesse was about four when he asked us about the scar on his tummy, and ever since then he’s been very proud of his connection and grateful to Birmingham Children’s Hospital.

“Jesse had a great time on his challenge, especially when he met some older skaters en route. They skated with him for some of the way, chatted about his challenge and even sponsored him too! That really kept him going and made him feel really special. We’re so proud of him. ”

Miranda Williams, Head of Public Fundraising at Birmingham Children’s Hospital Charity, said: “Well done Jesse! Even walking or running 10k is a big enough challenge for some people so we’re ‘wheelie’ impressed by Jesse’s skating challenge!

“The money he raised will go towards helping us do more for the 90,000 sick kids we treat every single year.”