While most mammies will have felt a little emotional as they kissed their little one and sent them into the classroom for the first time, Ben’s mother Lesley had more cause than most to shed a tear as the day marked a milestone she never thought she would see.

Ben was born in late 2003, a staggering 15 weeks early. When he was just a few weeks old he developed the superbug MRSA and on top of that was then diagnosed as having Subglottic Stenosis (severe narrowing of the airway) and had to be fitted with a tracheostomy.

Ben’s parents were told then that their little boy would have to live with the tracheostomy until the age of three or four when reconstructive surgery could be carried out on his airway.

“Life with the tracheostomy tube is not easy. It can get blocked easily and Ben has to be suctioned during the day and night to keep it clear. At times it will just block up and we have, literally, a matter of minutes to get the tube changed and get him breathing again.”

The couple were therefore devastated when they were told that last that Ben will have to live with his tracheostomy tube well into his teenage years.

“When the time came for his reconstructive surgery he was taken down to theatre and they had a look around and discovered his initial diagnosis was wrong and he has a condition known as Bilateral Vocal Cord Fixation. This basically means his vocal cords are paralysed and will never operate correctly.

“If we were to go ahead with the surgery last year he would have lost his ability to speak entirely. So now we have to wait until he has gone through puberty, and the cords have stretched, to have further corrective surgery and finally get rid of the tracheostomy tube.”

Because of Ben’s condition, Lesley had to find a primary school willing to take on the responsibility of suctioning her son’s tube and having staff trained to change his tube as and when it become necessary.

“Really he should only have his tube changed once a week, but we find it gets blocked three or four times and requires a quick change. It is a very unpleasant experience - it hurts - but Ben never complains. He just gets on with it. He is a very happy wee boy and a brilliant big brother to our other son, Jake.”

Having applied for a place at Oakgrove Primary School, Lesley was delighted when Ben was accepted and the school set about putting together a care package for her son.

“Until now I’ve been at home to look after Ben and when he went to playschool, my mother worked there. There has always been someone I know and trust - me, my mother, my sister or my husband Lee - to work with Ben so it has been hard to put that trust in someone else, but the school have been amazing,” Lesley said.

As term started, Ben’s teacher Mrs.