A MOTHER and her young child had a lucky escape after some clothing set on fire in the early hours of Monday.

Fire crews from Caversham and Dee Road were sent to Kingswood Court in Southcote at around 4am after they were alerted by the family.

The clothes had set fire after being left on an electrical heater and the flat filled with smoke.

The mother was alerted to the imminent danger by the 'crackling' sound of the fire and she jumped into action after the fire started on the ground floor of the building.

Geoff Wright, crew manager for Caversham Road, said: "She was very lucky really because if it had burned upwards it could have set fire to the small Christmas tree that was next to it on the window.

"She had a young child, but nobody was hurt. They made the call to us after she was awoken by crackling noises from the fire.

"The whole flat was smoke logged, but luckily there were not many flames.

"We arrived at around 4am along with Dee Road and were on the scene for an hour."