Bedford's own national treasure Captain Tom Moore reaches astonishing £12million mark for the NHS

A veteran from Marston Moretaine, who captured the nation's hearts, has completed his walk this morning raising over £12million for the NHS.

When Captain Tom Moore came up with the idea of raising cash for the NHS by walking 100 lengths of his garden, the 99-year-old was inspired to support the NHS after he received treatment after breaking his hip and for skin cancer treatment.

He originally wanted to raise £1,000 for NHS Charities Together, by completing the lengths of his back garden before he turns 100 at the end of the month.

Tom completed the his walk this morning live on BBC Breakfast.

His achievements were singled out by Health Secretary Matt Hancock during the Wednesday evening press conference at Downing Street.

Captain Tom, who is the oldest advisory for the Maytrix Group, said: “I am humbled by the generosity of the British public and want to say thank you to everyone who has donated to the NHS Charities Together, in support of my 100 laps.

"Our NHS are incredible, and anything we can do to support and help them right now is what I intend to do before my 100th birthday.”

Daisy Craydon, head of marketing and PR at Maytrix Group, said: “It is amazing to be a part of this national campaign. I cannot believe how quickly Tom has captured the hearts of the nation.

"We at Maytrix Group want to continue to support our NHS at these challenging times, and show our frontline staff how appreciative we all are. Thank you, we couldn’t have done this without you."

Just Giving has donated £100,000 to Tom's fundraising, Just Giving (@Just Giving) tweeted: "A massive congratulations @CaptainTomMoore on completing your challenge To celebrate this (and your 100th birthday) we’re proud to have donated £100,000 to @NHSCharitiesTogether. Thank you, again and again for bringing such joy to the nation when we needed it the most."

Bedfordshire's Neighbourhood Watch Network has congratulated Captain Tom on his efforts. A spokesperson for NHWN said: "Hats off to Captain Tom Moore from Bedfordshire, you are a legend Sir, £12m is amazing. Enjoy your birthday on the 30th, you deserve it."

The money raised will go to NHS Charities Together which represents, supports and champions the work of the NHS’ official charities.

To keep up to date with Tom’s fundraising visit: www.justgiving.com/fundraising/tomswalkforthenhs