WHEN dad-to-be Robert Locke was told to drive his pregnant girlfriend Sarah Willson to the hospital that’s exactly what he did.

And when Miss Willson began to deliver their son herself while in the front passenger seat, the 20-year-old kept on driving.

By the time they completed the five-minute one-mile journey from Miss Willson’s home in Witan Way, Wantage, to Wantage Community Hospital, James William Locke had been born.

Car mechanic Mr Locke said: “We carried on driving, we just wanted to get there to make sure everything was ok as this is our first baby and neither of us had delivered one before.

“I was thinking ‘oh my God that is my son right there.’ I honestly wanted to stop but luckily Sarah’s mum was in the car otherwise I would have stopped.”

The young couple had been to the hospital at 8am, but were sent home because Miss Willson was only 2cm dilated.

But only hours later the 18-year-old got the urge to push and they jumped into their Vauxhall Astra with Miss Willson’s mum Kylie Willson and sped to the hospital in Charlton Road.

Miss Willson said: “I started pushing and he started coming. I pushed and pulled at the same time.

“I said ‘Oh my God that’s my baby.’ At that point I was in shock with what had just happened. I think it took over – the fact is if I didn’t get him out, he was going to choke.

“I remember my mum shouting ‘just drive.’”

Miss Willson said she had to lift herself up in the front seat so she was almost standing while she was giving birth in the moving car.

James was born at 3.13pm on Wednesday, April 3, as the family passed Wantage Library in Grove Street. He weighted 6lbs 5oz.

If the baby had been a girl, she would have been named after the car, which the couple have nicknamed Anastasia.

Mr Locke said: “He was born by the library and by the time we got there Sarah was holding him in her arms.

“I had a bit of an adrenaline rush – when I stopped I broke into tears of joy and exhaustion. It was amazing.”

Miss Willson said: “We got to the hospital and the midwives were amazing, they all ran out.

“I was just happy he was ok. He is absolutely fine.”

She said hospital staff cleaned the front of the car where she had given birth.

Mr Locke, from Burford, met Miss Willson while studying car mechanics at Abingdon and Witney College and works at Ash Autos in Minster Lovell. He said: “His mum and dad are mechanics and he was born in a car so I’m hoping he will follow in our footsteps.”