A reformed offender who has lost count of his previous convictions has been hailed as a hero after saving a pensioner's life.

Part-time window cleaner Jeff Rochford dialled 999 when he spotted regular customer June Hoyle, 78, looking unwell.

The woman, from Stockton, Teesside, UK was slurring her speech and did not appear her usual bubbly self, Mr Rochford said.

An ambulance crew arrived while he was still speaking to the call handler and Mrs Doyle was taken to hospital where she was diagnosed as having suffered a stroke.

She has remained there since Monday and is undergoing treatment.

Her family firmly believes Mr Rochford saved her life.

Her son Dennis thanked the 36-year-old father of three, telling the Middlesbrough-based Gazette newspaper: "I don't care about his past. What he did was fantastic and the whole family is grateful."

Mr Rochford, who has 80 previous convictions, was pleased to be able to put something back into society, having turned his back on crime some years ago.

He said: "I'm pleased for the people around me who stuck by me. "My mum always said, 'There's something good in you Jeff'."

Mr Rochford, whose first caution dates back to when he was just eight, said: "I have lost count of how many convictions I have got.

"It is my past now and I will never go back."

He is currently studying to be a mentor to help other offenders turn their life around.