When little Mason was born at just 24 weeks old, his parents were determined to help him thrive despite the challenges ahead.
In June 2021, Matt and Natalie Hardingham’s world was turned upside when their son was unexpectedly born prematurely.
Their son, now aged four, would go on to spend four months at the Norfolk and Norwich Hospital’s Neonatal Intensive Care Unit, known as NICU.
He was kept in for four months with complications, including collapsed lungs.
But it was after he was discharged in October, the Dereham couple noticed he was not reaching the same developmental milestones as other children his age.
"We realised he wasn't walking, he wasn't sitting up on his own and he couldn't roll over,” Mrs Hardingham said.
"I kind of knew something wasn't right. After he turned one, we started to do some investigations.
"He had an MRI and that was when we found out that he had been diagnosed with cerebral palsy."
Following the shock diagnosis, Mason was given an NHS-funded wheelchair. But it soon became too big and heavy for him to move around on his own.
Now the family has praised its local community for rallying behind the four-year-old in a bid to get him a new wheelchair.
A GoFundMe campaign had been launched by Mrs Hardingham to get a better-suited wheelchair for her son and help him to achieve some independence.
Mrs Hardingham said: "We just want him to be able to thrive. He can't do things a regular child can do, and we want him to get the best out of life.
"We had an assessment for private wheelchair, which came to £5,000 and we just don't have that kind of money.
"We ended up raising £1,000 within 24 hours and within a week, we raised the funds we needed. The response has been absolutely incredible.
"Now we're just waiting to receive another assessment to get a quote. Once we do that, we'll be able to order the wheelchair.”
Mr Hardingham, along with a friend, will also be doing a 15,000ft skydive on June 6 as part of the fundraiser.
"We didn't think we'd raise the money so soon," Mrs Hardingham added. "That's why it was booked in so far ahead.
"It has been so overwhelming. We've been blown away by the support of friends, family and people who have donated and sent messages.
"When you have a disabled child, you tend to look at things through a different pair of eyes and everyday life changes.
"The world can be quite isolating and lonely sometimes, so it's nice to have that community and it's really opened our eyes.”
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