Hartley Alleyne, the former first-class player turned coach, has been given permission to remain in the UK for another three years after he had faced the threat of deportation.

Alleyne played for Barbados, Worcestershire, Kent and Natal during a 13-year career before moving into coaching at St Edmund's school in Canterbury. Despite working in the UK for many years and gaining a coaching qualification, which he thought would get him a work permit, last year Alleyne was told he would have to leave.

His local MP, Julian Brazier, took up the case and Alleyne, who said this result "felt like winning the Lotto", thanked everyone for their support.

"It has been a very long, hard slog which has been dragging on for some eight months," he told the BBC. "But I'm glad common sense has at last prevailed and I cannot thank enough all the people, both locally and across the country, including Mr Brazier, for their help."

Brazier added: "This is a tolerable result - obviously it would have been better if Hartley had been given permission to remain here permanently - but he now has a strong chance of eventually gaining the full citizenship that he deserves."