Two young boys from Portland were given an award for their actions after their mother was knocked unconscious by a piece of play equipment.

Dante Yates, nine, and Seth Yates, eight, were on a day out with their mother Louisa last summer when they visited a park in the West Ham area of London.

Louisa was pushing Dante around and around on the roundabout when one of the bars smacked her in the forehead, knocking her unconscious.

What the boys did next was truly remarkable. "Dante put me into the recovery position and kept his baby brother and sister calm by entertaining them while checking on me.

"There was nobody else in the park so Seth left the park to find an adult that could help. He didn't like the look of the first person he found so found a mum with their daughter and asked them to help.

"By the time they returned to the park I was coming round and didn't want an ambulance so the lady sat me down and called my husband who came and fetched us all."

The boys learned these first aid skills from their time at Portland Badgers Group. Badger groups are after school clubs, a part of St John's Ambulance's youth programmes, that caters for children between the ages of seven and ten throughout England.

At Portland Badgers Group, the boys learn first aid and how to be active citizens, do arts and crafts, take part in team games, develop leadership skills, and much more.

When the group's leader, Terry Shakespeare, heard what happened she volunteered the boys for a St John's Ambulance Saving a Life award at the Celebrate West event.

Terry said: "We are so very proud of them, I just had to nominate them for being so brave in looking after their mum and younger siblings and getting help."

Louisa said: "We attended the Mercure hotel in Bristol on Saturday night for a black tie dinner and awards ceremony and the boys won an award in the saving a life category. They were the youngest members in the West region to win this award"

Chief Operating Officer of St. John's Ambulance, Richard Lee, said: “All St John people go above and beyond to accomplish something extra special for our charity and their communities; Seth and Dante are great examples of that commitment and what they did, looking after their mum is truly amazing.

“Their success, combined with the hard work, dedication and support shown by each and every person in the South West and West Midlands, has led to some amazing achievements that we can all be proud of.

“I would like to congratulate them, along with everyone who was nominated, as well as thanking the whole team in St John Ambulance’s west region; together they deliver amazing things every day.”

For more info about the St John's Ambulance Badgers, go to: http://www.sja.org.uk/sja/young-people/badgers.aspx