A young girl from Belton has won an award from a national charity for her fundraising efforts.

Eleven year-old Macie Balfour was one of the winners at the British Heart Foundation's (BHF) heart hero awards. The results were announced at a special ceremony at the BHF's research centre at Imperial College London.

The charity's heart hero awards celebrate the exceptional contribution of individuals, such as fundraisers, scientists or health professionals to fighting heart disease.

Macie was recognised for her work raising money for the BHF. Over the last two years, she has organised a series of events at her school, including a sponsored skipping contest and a 'wear red' day. The events have brought in over £800 for the BHF.

She also organised a special assembly to turn her fellow students into lifesavers by teaching them CPR, the simple steps that anyone witnessing a cardiac arrest, or finding a victim, can take to help save a life.

Macie was born with truncus arteriosis, a condition that occurs when the arteries in the heart don't form correctly. Nine weeks after she was born she had open heart surgery to give her a new artery to take blood from the heart to the lungs.

Since then Macie's condition has stabilised but she will need heart surgery throughout her life to maintain the replacement artery.

Macie said: 'I'm really excited to win this award as I never expected it. The BHF is a charity very important to me. I've already had lots of new ideas to help raise money for their research and help the lives of people with heart conditions.'

Anyone interested in forming a fundraising group should contact Dawne Hart on hartd@bhf.org.uk