A young doctor whose bike was stolen from Twickenham Green says he is overwhelmed by the generosity of the community who rallied round to raise funds for a new one within days.

A crowdfunding page for Dr Paul Chapman, 31, raised £970 in just 24 hours after his partner Michelle Keaveney spoke of their devastation in a post at the weekend.

She wrote: "Gutted. Paul is an NHS doctor at West Middlesex Hospital and he has not taken a single day of holiday since the beginning of the pandemic.

"I am so upset I can't tell you! It was a Christmas gift from his mum so he could cycle to work.

"I truly wish it was my bike that got taken instead because Paul is such a great guy under so much pressure at the moment."

People quickly started responding with information about the theft and offers of a bicycle on loan or money towards a new one. A local secondary school teacher, Tiffany, saw the offers and set up a crowdfunding page to get Paul a new one.

The junior doctor, who normally works with patients who have heart failure but transferred to a covid ward during the pandemic, said: "My mum had gifted that bike to me to make life easier for commuting to West Middlesex instead of getting the bus and to lose it suddenly was gutting.

"Tiffany had set a goal of £500 to replace my bike and within four fours it had hit over £900.

"Overwhelmed doesn't even cover how I feel.

"We also had various businesses donate money, and offer free coffees and lunches. It was just phenomenal.

"Everyone is struggling in various ways and work is obviously difficult right now. So the thought of so many generous people, strangers, out there willing to help was such a boost and incredibly humbling. This is above and beyond anything I could have expected. Thank you all."

Michelle added: "Despite the bike being stolen it has become so secondary to the goodness of the community. People really have been awesome."

Paul plans to replace his bike and says he will use any extra money to benefit his hospital ward and "the staff who have been working tirelessly for months on end now."

He said: "I will be buying a nice coffee machine and a bulk of coffee pods to give everyone a little break and a treat because I really feel like people contributed to the NHS, not just myself. We owe Tiffany and all those who contributed a huge thank you."