A MARATHON and a sponsored swim helped a Newport school boost its funds by more than £1,500.

The father of a school pupil and the partner of a teacher took on the two physical challenges to help fund outdoor play equipment for children at Maes Ebbw Special School in Maesglas.

Paul Melhuish’s sixyear- old son Ben has been a pupil at Maes Ebbw for the last three years.

Mr Melhuish decided to run the Edinburgh marathon to raise funds for the school and trained for six months before the race on May 22.

He finished the 26 mile route in four hours, and raised £1,035 in sponsorship.

Mr Melhuish, 41, said: “They’ve done so much for our son we just wanted to give something back to the children so they can have more equipment.”

Ben Baker, whose fiancee Kirsty Hutchinson has taught at Maes Ebbw for six years, took on the Great London Swim in his bid to raise cash for the school, swimming one mile around the Royal Victoria Dock.

Mr Baker, 33, from Caldicot, completed the swim earlier this month in 36 minutes and 27 seconds, and has donated £750 in sponsorship to the school.

He said: “The kids at Maes Ebbw are fantastic and the staff do a grand job. It was nothing for me to swim one mile, but to raise all that money and give them something was a great feeling.”