REVELLERS have raised more than £1,500 for the Great North Air Ambulance.

People in Bishop Auckland held events in three pubs after the service was called to a fatal accident in which fathers Bryan Hardwick and David Weatherburn died and Mr Hardwick’s two-year-old son, Liam, was seriously hurt.

They were part of a group returning home from collecting conkers in the area in October last year when they were hit by a car.

Liam was airlifted to hospital in Middlesbrough with head injuries, and made a full recovery.

Customers at Hogans pub and the Cumberland Arms donated to collection buckets, and Hogans’ staff donned school uniforms and held a raffle, raising £300. A live music event at the Belvedere Club on the same night raised more than £1,200.

One customer said: “A lot of people in Bishop Auckland were affected by the accident, and this was a way for them to give something back.”