A GIRL of 10 who put a life-saving call in to the South East Coast Ambulance Service on behalf of her mother has been rewarded with a special certificate.

Lauren Manktelow-Wells, from Chatham, called 999 after her mother, Trudy, collapsed at home in August 2006.

Unknown to Lauren or her mother, Trudy, was suffering from untreated diabetes.

Technician Kay Townsey, who attended to the emergency with paramedic Maureen Rice, said: “When we initially got the call it was to a woman who had collapsed.

"When we arrived there was a little girl there who was obviously very concerned about her mum.

“We hadn’t yet established the reason why Trudy was ill, but as we were transferring her to the ambulance she stopped breathing.”

Once onboard the ambulance the crew began to work on Trudy and discovered that her blood sugar level was 21.7. The normal range should be between four and eight.

Trudy said: “The last thing I remember was collapsing and the next thing I remember was waking up in hospital, two days later. I was told that if Lauren had left calling 999 for another two minutes, I would have been dead.

“I had told Lauren what to do in an emergency but you never know whether they have understood. However, in Lauren’s case she did remember and I’m so proud of her. She really deserves the recognition.”

Kay said: “As this case shows it is important that parents explain to their children what to do in an emergency because you never know when you may need to call 999.”