THEY may be small steps for young Matthew Myerscough - but they are giant steps in his struggle against cerebral palsy.

Five-year-old Matthew gave everyone at St. Bernadettes Primary School a wonderful surprise recently when he walked into an assembly unaided for around 15 steps.

Now Matthew hopes that he'll be able to run around and play football with other children when he's older.

Matthew said: "I wanted to start walking like other people do.

"My legs get a bit tight after I've been going for a bit but I'm doing well. I hope that when I'm older, I'll be able to run and play football with all the others."

In the early stages, Lancaster lad Matthew grew up without his parents knowing there was a problem.

Matthew lives on Holker Close with his parents Michael and Gillian and with brother Joseph.

His mother, Gillian, explained: "He wasn't sitting up by 11 months so we thought something was wrong but it was such a shock when we found out he had cerebral palsy. "We were suddenly thrown into a world of appointments and seeing other people that we had never seen before and it took such a long time to adjust."

The damage caused to Matthew's brain impairs certain functions and weakens the limbs, making everyday activities, such as walking, more difficult.

Mrs Myerscough said: "Someone gave us some good advice - they said that we had to choose whether he was to live his life in 'disabled world' or 'normal world' and once we had chosen which path to go on, we had to stick on it."

To help build up strength in his legs and improve his coordination, Matthew was given a frame when he was two and then sticks when he started at St. Bernadettes Primary School.

Mrs Myerscough said: "He started walking last year but he didn't want to carry on because he found it so hard.

"Now he is so determined to do whatever the other children do that he really wants to walk, no matter what.

"I think that when he's older, he'll probably be able to walk without his sticks but I just wonder how stable he'll be."

His support teacher, Mrs Carole Baldwin, said: "Matthew had got an excellent vocabulary for his age and he's so determined to do well.

"He's making a lot of progress both physically and mentally and his personality just shines through - he's always laughing and smiling and he's so positive about everything he does and everyone around him."

Mrs Myerscough added: "All of the children see past his disability and see him for what he is.

"We deal with things one day at a time and we're just so lucky to have him."

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