A MUM is encouraging people to donate to a special charity which helps babies like her nine-month-old son Leo.
Little Leo received a special new helmet two days before Christmas after being diagnosed with plagiocephaly - a flattening of the back of the skull, giving the head a distorted appearance.
The helmet cost hundreds of pounds while the total treatment can run up to £2,500. The family was faced with having to pay the £1,950 cost themselves until HeadStart4Babies came forward to provide funding.
Mum Jade Gross, of East Street, Grantham, said: “We have set up a Facebook page to raise money and both our families have pubs so they are going to be raising money too.
“Hopefully we can pay back the charity and then another baby will get the same help.”
Leo’s helmet has been made to the exact specifications of his head to correct his skull whilst also leaving space for the head to continue growing.
Jade said: “The first day he wore it he hated it but he has been much better since and slept through with it on.”
Jade and her partner Joel Snowden first became aware there was a problem thanks to a family member who had researched into plagiocephaly.
Joel said: “We pointed it out to the health visitors and the doctors but nobody thought it was anything to worry about.
“But we went to a clinic for tests and they said it was actually quite serious.”
Leo must now where the helmet for five months while attending regular check-ups at the Technology in Motion clinic in Leeds to check his progress.
l If you would like to donate to the family’s fund-raising drive, go to www.justgiving.com/claire-snowden1