NETHER Stowey man Steve Taylor spent two days behind bars in the village gaol, raising £1,263 for charity.

He voluntarily surrendered to custody to support the Children's Air Ambulance which receives no government funding and relies on public donations to fly lifesaving missions.

There were no creature comforts for Steve during the time he was locked up and conditions in the Somerset gaol were damp and cold as the weather was particularly bad when he was 'doing his time'.

Nether Stowey has a village lock-up once used for the temporary detention of people who were held before going before the local magistrate.

In recent months the charity’s helicopter transferred a young child from the Taunton area when a road transfer would have taken much longer.

The Children’s Air Ambulance flies critically-ill children and babies when they need to get specialist treatment. It has made a number of transfers from the South West to hospitals in other parts of the UK.

Head of fundraising for the Children’s Air Ambulance Jonathan Penny says he is amazed at the 'weird and wonderful things' people do to support the charity.

“Without the generosity of supporters like Steve we wouldn’t be able to save the lives of babies and children,” he says.

The Children’s Air Ambulance is the UK’s only dedicated emergency transfer service for seriously ill children.

For more information go to www.childrensairambulance.org.uk, or call 08454 130999.