A SIX-year-old boy with cerebral palsy is learning to take his first steps unaided following pioneering microsurgery.

Finlay Lomax, of North Prospect, is the eleventh person to undergo the spinal operation in the UK.

A brain bleed when he was born 13 weeks prematurely left him with cerebral palsy.

The condition, which affects the nervous system, means he has spent his life using a wheelchair and walking frame.

Mum Becci Lomax said the procedure at Frenchay Hospital, Bristol, five weeks ago had made an 'amazing' difference.

Finlay is already standing unaided and is able to walk a few steps while holding her hand.

Becci said she hopes he will one day be able to walk on his own, play football with his friends and even go skiing.

The operation, called selective dorsal rhizotomy (SDR), involves dividing nerves as they enter the spinal cord to end painful muscle spasms.

Singe mum Becci said if he had not received the surgery on the NHS, she faced having to raise £40,000 to take him to America.

She is now trying to raise funds to cover the costs of an intensive two-week course of specialist physiotherapy in London.

The 31-year-old said: "When Fin was born I didn't know whether he would survive six hours, let alone six years.

"The operation has really changed him. Within five weeks he is excelling beyond anything he's done in his life. It's absolutely amazing.

"Before the surgery, even walking on the frame was laboured and hard work.

"Now he's not in any pain, he can concentrate more, he's going from sitting to standing, you can hold his hand and he'll walk.

"He's got the drive to do it and it's just a matter of confidence now. I'm willing him with all the will in my body."

Becci, who is studying human resources at City College Plymouth, said they got a call from surgeons in Bristol in spring last year to say Finlay may be able to have the surgery.

After months of assessments and waiting for NHS funding to be agreed, he underwent the eight-hour operation five weeks ago.

He stayed in hospital for three weeks, which included an intense programme of physiotherapy. He is receiving physiotherapy twice a week, and hydrotherapy, through the NHS in Plymouth.

Becky has been given £3,600 from charity Cerebra for a two-week intensive course of physiotherapy at the Bobath Centre in London, a specialist therapy unit for children with cerebral palsy.

She wants to raise a further £600 to cover travel and accommodation costs.

Selective dorsal rhizotomy is an established cerebral palsy treatment but its availability in the UK has been limited until now. The first child to undergo the procedure, in May last year, was seven-year-old Beau Britton, from near Callington.

It is hoped more children from all over the country will benefit from the procedure.

Specialists say that, if performed early enough, it could reduce or eliminate problems related to lower limb spasticity, such as muscle shortening, contractures and abnormal bone growth.

Frenchay Hospital in Bristol is offering a new version of SDR which concentrates on the lower part of the spinal cord – increasing its effectiveness and reducing risk.

To help Becci's fundraising efforts, visit www.justgiving.com/finlaylomax