A LITTLE boy who is determined to walk is in need of a £30,000 operation.

Lewis Whele, two, has cerebral palsy which affects the lower half of his body - he cannot walk unaided.

In order to help him walk, he is in need of a life-changing operation called selective dorsal rhizotomy, which is used to relieve muscle stiffness.

His mum Toni, 42, of West Street, Coggeshall, said her son has overcome a lot since he was born.

She said: “He was born 10 weeks early, I was bleeding a lot so staff at Broomfield Hospital decided it was best to bring him into the world early.

“We thought everything was going to be great, he was a healthy weight which was something we were worried about.

“About a week after I came home the hospital rang to say he had not opened his bowels, he was taken to Addenbrooke’s Hospital with a twisted bowel.

“They operated the next day and he was back in an incubator at Broomfield for three weeks. 

“We went about our daily living, we had routine checks and at about five months we realised his reflexes weren’t normal. He had stiffness in his legs.

“We took him to see a physiotherapist and we started to realise something wasn’t right.”

Lewis had an MRI scan which revealed he had cerebral palsy.

Mrs Whele and her husband James, 41, said it was a lot to cope with.

She said: “We had to think about how it would impact all our lives. He can crawl but he can’t walk unaided, he has a walker and sticks.

“We went to Great Ormond Street Hospital to find out what’s next and they put him on medication to help his muscles.

“In eight months he will have botox to help his muscles, then it’s a waiting game until he is about five when he can have selective dorsal rhizotomy.”

The operation costs a fortune and Lewis will need to have two years of physiotherapy afterwards.

Mrs Whele said: “He will be really weak afterwards and will need intensive therapy so he can learn to walk again.

“It’s a big operation but the aim is to get him walking independently, we are keeping positive.

“He does get frustrated, he started nursery before Christmas as I thought it would be good for his speech but there’s so many differences between him and the other children.

“He needs a carer with him all the time, as he can’t run around like the other children.”

Despite the setbacks she said her son, who is a younger brother to Hayden, five, is a happy boy.

She said: “We always try and find things he can be included in, he is a cute and funny boy, he’s just so determined to walk.”

The charity Just 4 Children is helping the family reach their target.

The Card Factory, which has just launched a Charitable Foundation, have vowed to make Lewis’ cause their first and will match whatever funds are made.

To donate visit www.just4children.org/children-helped2018/ lewiss-little-legs.

To follow his story visit www.

facebook.com/lewislittlelegs.