Three-year-old hero saves his mum

Jack and his sister Evie with mum Natalie

A QUICK-THINKING little boy has been hailed a hero after saving his mum following an epileptic fit.

Brave Jack Griffin (3) sprung to the aid of mum Natalie when she had a seizure and fell at their home in Fitton Hill. The youngster knew to press the emergency button, which is connected to Oldham Council’s response service..

But when he received no response on the line, Jack grabbed his mum’s phone and dialled the most recent contact — which turned out to be his grandmother, Christine.

Natalie Griffin (26) said: “He said ‘mummy is poorly, can you come and help?’ My mum told him what to do and that she would come over as soon as possible.

“He got a cushion and put it under my head and a cloth to stop the blood, as I’d bitten my tongue. He also comforted his six-month-old sister Evie.” Jack watched out for his gran and let her in 10 minutes later.

Mrs Griffin, a support worker currently on maternity leave, said: “He is an amazing little boy and my hero. Without him trying to reach help and placing the cushion under my head I could have choked and died.

“I’ve had epilepsy for almost 10 years so Jack has always been brought up with it and has had to help me once before in the past. He handled everything.”

Natalie, who made a full recovery following the seizure, said: “He can’t even say the word epilepsy but he knows what to do if I have a fit. I’m so proud of him.”

But Natalie wasn’t so proud of the council’s alarm system. After complaining, she was told it had been inoperative at the time of her collapse: “The council were very apologetic, but when I needed it, it wasn’t there for me. I feel very let down by what happened.”

Danielle Proctor, managing director of Oldham Care and Support offered the service’s apologies.

“What happened wasn’t acceptable. There was a temporary problem with the connection to the helpline and the backup system. Once we were aware of this we immediately started contacting all our residents.

“We are taking immediate steps to ensure this doesn’t happen again.”