A 15-year-old boy has donated 15,000 crayons and 1,500 colouring books to help sick children in hospital.

Carter Crockett, a first year student at Millville High School near Philadelphia, Pennsylvania said: "I’m putting my autism on the side so I can help them."

“The fact that he was feeling compassion toward other people is huge because that’s not something that autistic kids have – that’s really hard for them to do,” Carter's mother Patti Crockett told the local Fox News affiliate.

Carter came up with the idea one day over dinner at a restaurant that was raising funds for St Jude's Children's Hospital in Memphis, Tennessee.

They primarily treat children with cancer at no cost to their parents and families.

Carter spent nearly a year collecting items from family and friends to help these children.

The restaurant where he came up with the idea, Chili's, also donated gift cards, t-shirts, toys, hats, and other items.

Ms Crockett, Carter, and two friends loaded all the items into a camper van and took a road trip to deliver the items in person at St Jude's.

“Well, everyone loves to colour...and I thought, maybe I could bring colour back into their lives by donating crayons and colouring books," said Carter.