An 11-year-old boy who broke his skull when he was hit by a car is hoping to be back at school in the next few weeks.

Oliver Gardner was struck in Valley Drive, Gravesend, on his way to St John's Catholic Comprehensive School in Gravesend last month.

Doctors put him in a coma for six days to prevent further damage after he sustained three fractures to his skull.

Four days after he regained consciousness, he was allowed to go home and has since been making a steady recovery, according to mum Emma Church.

However, fears remain as to what long-term brain damage the incident may have caused.

Miss Church, 33, said: "He is doing really well. He's a very lucky boy.

"He was walking to school by himself when my mum rang me and said he had been hit by a car. Ten minutes later I was there."

"He is doing really well. He's a very lucky boy. It was a horrid thing to have to go through..." - Mum Emma Church

"It is hard because I keep having flashbacks. It was a horrid thing to have to go through."

Throughout his recovery, Oliver has received lots of support from friends, family, and teachers from his school who visited to wish him well.

Miss Church added that Oliver was due to restart school after the half-term break for three days a week.

She said: "I think tiredness will be the main hurdle for him. He misses his friends and he's keen to get back to school.

"St John's has been amazing. They sent him a card and have been really nice and friendly."

Some found the photograph of Oliver in the road shocking, but Miss Church said that if it helped raise awareness about road safety, she was happy to see it published.

She said: "I couldn't state more the importance of road safety after going through this.

"We have really stressed to Oliver how important it is to check before crossing the road."

She also expressed her gratitude towards an unknown off-duty paramedic, who stopped to help out with the rescue operation as he was passing by.

Since the incident, police have given talks on road safety at the school.

The accident happened on September 23 and involved a grey Citroen C1. A police investigation is ongoing.