A DETERMINED mum is raising money to modify her home for her six-year-old disabled son, who has a condition which severely stunts his development.

Emma Wilson, 35, has already secured a £36,000 loan from Flintshire Council to extend their house on Tegid Way in Saltney, Chester.

But she needs another £5,000 to provide sensory equipment and other extras for smiley Lennon, who has a mental age of 18 months.

The mum-of-two is  appealing for people to help her hit the target as renovation work cannot begin until the full amount has been raised.

The pair will be packing bags at Morrisons supermarket in Saltney this Saturday and will also host a fundraising night at the Grosvenor Arms pub in Handbridge the following Saturday.

Lennon has a severe case of a condition called Global Development Delay (GDD), which has left him unable to walk and talk.

His brain has also not developed at the normal rate, and doctors have been left baffled about what caused it, despite numerous tests.

Airbus employee Emma told the Leader she did not know what the future holds for Lennon but she hopes the modifications will give him some independence as he grows older.

She said the council grant will pay for an extension to their home to accommodate a shower and toilet ‘wet room’ – complete with a hoist.

It will also allow her to convert the garage into a downstairs bedroom for Lennon, with the eventual aim of giving him greater independence and free rein of the ground floor in his wheelchair.

As Lennon grows, Emma and her eldest son Joseph, 17, have begun to struggle carrying him up and down the stairs, as well as helping him out with other day-to-day tasks.

“These modifications will make a massive difference to our lives,” she said. “We’ve been trying to get the grant and permissions for two years. It’s starting to feel real now!

“I hope that, in years to come, he’ll be able to get out of his bedroom himself and get in his wheelchair using the hoist – then he’ll have free rein downstairs.

“Hopefully one day he’ll be able to do things on his own and have some independence. That’s my dream for him but we don't know what the future will hold.”

She said the extra money is needed to buy sensory equipment such as special lighting and flooring, as Lennon responds well to certain lights and textures.

“He doesn’t really play with toys,” added Emma. “For Lennon it’s about textures and mirrors and different coloured lights. If he’s feeling frustrated, then these things are good for calming him down.

“He is very sensory.”

Having already had one child, Emma said that she knew something wasn’t right with Lennon within the first six months.

He was diagnosed with GDD and a condition that means his head is abnormally large but experts at Alder Hey Children’s Hospital in Liverpool could not figure out why his brain wasn't developing.

“They can’t give him an operation or anything, which is very frustrating,” said Emma.

“We’ll continue to try new things and physiotherapy. It took a long time for me to be able to talk about it without getting upset. We now accept that this is Lennon and we love him no matter what.”

Lennon, who attends Ysgol Pen Coch School in Flint, understands some speech and also communicates with his mum and brother with picture cards.

Emma added: “Lennon is such a people person. He draws people in and so many strangers come over to see him. He likes people stroking his hand and tickling.

“He’s very vocal too, even though he can't talk! He’s generally a happy boy.”

l To donate money to Lennon’s fund visit www.crowdfunder.co.uk and search for ‘Lennon’.

All are welcome to the Race Night from 7pm at the Grosvenor Arms pub on Saturday, February 18.