A school boy was recovering this evening after he fell down a 100ft cliff.

Callum Littlejohn was airlifted to the James Cook University Hospital in Middlesbrough after he slid and fell down Blackhall Rocks, east Durham onto the beach.

He underwent surgery to remove blood clots from his brain and after a scan later in the day, he was given the all clear. The youngster had been playing with friends at around 1pm on Wednesday when he slipped down a cliff face falling the final 20 feet onto the beach.

While emergency services were called, a friend ran to tell Callum's grandparents Thomas and Billie Rundle, who live nearby.

"I quickly rang Callum's mum, my daughter Julie and all of us went down to the beach where a helicopter had already arrived and Callum was being treated by paramedics,'' said Mr Rundle last night.

He added: "He was conscious but had a deep gash in the back of his head and it was thought that he may have had a broken arm and leg.''

Blackhall's county councillor Alan Cox, who visited the family yesterday called for coastal wardens to keep an eye out for youngsters, especially during school holidays.

"It is impossible for us to fence off the hundreds of miles of cliff on the east Durham coast but I have contacted the officer who is in charge of looking after the coastal strip to see if there's anything we can do,'' said Coun Cox.