Girl, six, defies medical odds to walk to school with her younger sister
A SIX- year- old girl who was told she may never walk has achieved her ultimate goal – walking her little sister to school on her first day.
Amelia- Rose Walton was born with Hereditary Spastic Paraplegia – a rare, degenerative disorder which affects walking due to weakness in the legs.
The condition meant she could only walk with a frame and was mostly restricted to a wheelchair.
But a fundraising bid by Amelia-Rose’s family raised £ 100,000 to get her to the US for pioneering treatment to improve her muscle stiffness.
Surgery was carried out in August 2019 and with the help of almost daily physiotherapy Amelia- Rose has gone from strength to strength.
And this week the youngster, from Bishop’s Cleeve, Glos, was delighted to walk with her younger sister Chloe, five, who was starting her first day of school. It was a goal Amelia- Rose set herself after her surgery, and left her parents Tanya Cross- Walton, 41, and Ben Walton, 37, feeling very proud.
Accountant Ben said: “Chloe has just started reception and Amelia has gone into Year 2. She said she remembers what that first day feels like. She really wanted to be able to walk in beside Chloe, holding her little sister’s hand.” He also said Amelia- Rose’s friends, whom she had not seen for months due to lockdown, were also “amazed” to see her walking.
He explained: “Before her operation she had zero balance. Her knee wouldn’t bend and she had to have either her walker to hold on to, or a person on each side of her holding her hands. The operation has given her her independence back.
“She still uses her sticks most of the time, but now she can walk along just holding one of our hands. It has been really emotional for us to see.”