A £60,000 fundraising campaign to help a Newbridge schoolboy walk is almost half way to its target - after receiving a £4,000 boost thanks to a group of pigeon racing enthusiasts.

Seven-year-old Curtis Bowditch needs a pioneering operation called selective dorsal rhizotomy (SDR) to help correct a condition called spastic diplegia, or stiffness in his leg muscles.

The condition, which was caused by cerebral palsy after Curtis was born 15 weeks prematurely, means he cannot put his feet flat and needs a walking frame or wheelchair to get around.

By cutting nerve fibres in his spine, SDR could straighten Curtis' legs and let him walk unaided, but the treatment is not automatically available on the NHS and the Ty Isaf Primary School pupil may have to travel to America for treatment at a cost of £60,000.

Rhymney Valley South Road Flying Club decided to try and help after hearing about Curtis' plight from one of its members.

Over the last month, the pigeon racing club has held two pigeon sales through the pages of magazine British Homing World.

58 birds were sold, with prices ranging from £30 to £200, and the sale has now raised £3,720 for the Curtis Bowditch Appeal.

The club donated a further £140, plus £180 in cash and cheques sent in following the British Homing World sale, bringing the total raised to £4,040.

This will now be added to the £24,421.87 raised by the Curtis Bowditch Appeal since last November.

Flying club secretary Ian Evans, 36, said: "We do lots of charity things as a club so we wanted to help. People from all over Britain donated through the sale, from Tyne and Wear and Hartlepool to Bristol and Bath."

Curtis' mother Rachel Booton said she was "gobsmacked" by the amount Mr Evans and his fellow members had raised.

She said: "It's just fantastic."

Curtis' family are still waiting to find out whether he qualifies for SDR treatment in the UK after a series on tests earlier this year.

To donate to the campaign, visit helpcurtis2walk.weebly.com. Donations can also be sent to 14 Newlyn Road, Pantside, Newbridge, NP11 5DA. Cheques should be made out to the Curtis Bowditch Appeal.