Family of kind-hearted 11-year-old who saved boy from drowning 'couldn't be more proud'
The family of a heroic Black Country boy who saved the life of another child in difficulty at sea have spoken of their pride.
Finley Hassall, 11, from Kingswinford, was on holiday with his family in June and was swimming with his dad when he saw another boy panicking in the sea at Hayle Beach in Cornwall.
The Dingle Community Primary School student encouraged the boy to stay calm and float on his back like a starfish, a tip he had recently learned from the RNLI Stormforce Magazine.
Finley then flagged down help from a nearby lifeguard, who was able to get the child to safety.
The 11-year-old has regular swimming lessons and takes advantage of the free school holiday swimming sessions.
His mother, Tara Patel, couldn't be more proud of him and said Finley is rather embarrassed by all the attention he is getting.
"No words can express how extremely proud we are of him for showing that bravery, courage and confidence," she said.
"He is so polite, well-mannered and has really calm mannerisms.
"Those qualities are what enabled him to keep calm in the situation and to keep that boy nice and calm when he was panicking and crying.
"He is very well-natured, he does a lot for the homeless, he goes to Wolverhampton and takes stuff for them."
Last week, Finley was invited to Dudley Council's mayoral parlour where he met the mayor of Dudley, Councillor Sue Greenaway.
Finley said: "I enjoyed meeting the mayor of Dudley and talking to her about what happened in Cornwall.
"I’d read in my RNLI Stormforce Magazine about how to float like a starfish so that’s what I asked him to do.
"I said I’d done this at my swimming lessons before and it will be fine if he could float on his back."
Finley lives with his mother Tara, younger brother Kieran and father Antony at their home in Kingswinford.
Tara said: "With what's gone on he is very humble with it all, I don’t think he really understands.
"He says anyone would have done it.
"He's like 'everyone is making such a fuss out of it'.
"He is very humble, he is a little embarrassed by it really.
"Finley started swimming lessons when he was six months old and I want to thank Summerhill Pathways in Kingswinford.
"Without their teaching, he wouldn't have been able to do what he did, so we are very grateful to them."
