The editor of the Northern Echo, has thanked the paper's readers for their warm generosity, which helped raise more than £30,000 for a little girl with a severe facial disfigurement.

Hannah Maxwell-Jones, from Middlesbrough, suffers from a rare compound haemangioma - or tumour of the blood vessels - which has steadily spread across her face.

In the hope of giving her a normal life, Hannah's parents will use the money raised to take her to America for surgery by a world expert in birthmarks, Professor Milton Waner.

The doctor has agreed to carry out five operations free of charge but the family needed to raise £20,000 to cover airfares and accommodation costs. The Northern Echo agreed to back their appeal and raised more than £30,000 in the first week.

Mr Barron told readers: "Although £20,000 is not an impossibly massive amount in a modern world where the National Lottery creates millionaires twice a week, we didn't dare expect that we would exceed the target in just one day."

Readers and advertisers of The Northern Echo contributed about £14,000 to the total, with the rest collected in a Helping Hannah Face The Future account at branches of Barclays Bank.

"It is extraordinary how the plight of this two-year-old girl has moved so many people to reach into their pockets," said Mr Barron, in his newspaper's editorial.

"On behalf of Hannah and her family, many, many thanks to one and all who contributed," he added.

Any money that is left over after Hannah's treatment will go into a trust fund to help others with disfigurements.

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