Friends of a young man whose life was saved thanks to volunteers from Norwich's SOS bus are a third of the way to their fundraising target for the pioneering night-time service.

John Stanford, 20, from Eaton, was involved in an accident at Essence in Prince of Wales Road on New Year's Eve and was left unconscious at the bottom of a flight of stairs.

First aiders and volunteers from the SOS bus were first on the scene and supported Mr Stanford's head for up to an hour while paramedics got him on a spinal board.

He was taken to Addenbrooke's Hospital, in Cambridge, and had an operation in which part of his skull was removed and spent more than a week in a coma because his injuries were so severe.

As reported in the Evening News, the former City of Norwich School pupil is now making a good recovery and a group of his friends are raising money for the SOS bus in recognition of its role in saving him.

The group, who all went to CNS in Eaton Road, are taking part in a five-day sponsored bike ride from Norwich to Amsterdam and back in July - a round trip of 255 miles.

So far they have been pledged just over �1,000, but are hoping to raise �3,000 for the SOS Bus.

To sponsor them log on to www.justgiving.com/sos-savedourstanners or click on the link on the top right hand side of this page.