A Swindon man is running a half marathon to raise money for the special care baby unit at the Great Western Hospital.

Sam Gillespie, 31, is hoping local companies will back him after he was inspired by the care a relative received at the hospital.

Mr Gillespie, of Barcelona Crescent, Wroughton, said: "I'm running for my niece because she was very poorly and at one stage we thought there was no hope for her.

"But the staff at the hospital were fantastic. You could see that the nurses really cared for the children like they were their own.

"For some of them it wasn't just a job it was their lives."

Sam gained an insight into the work of the hospital when his niece whose parents don't want her identified was born last September.

Sam said: "Unfortunately there were lots of complications when she was born. She has Down Syndrome and she was actually not breathing for quite a while.

"The nurses in the unit were wonderful. We were going up to the hospital two or three times a week to see her and the hospital was really good with all the family."

In April 2002 office worker Sam took part in a Brussels to Paris bike ride and raised £1,800 for Macmillan Cancer Relief.

Now he is hoping local firms will pay to have their name on his shirt when he does the 13-mile Great West Run in Exeter on May 1.

To sponsor Sam call him on 07795 143 487 or email sam.gillespie2@ntlworld.com