I just want to thank our train guard-ian angel for helping my Caleb stay calm

ASKELMERSDALE mum wants to find a Merseyrail guard who came to the rescue when her autistic son became terrified by the loud chanting of football fans.

Jessica Roughley, 27, was on her way to Southport Air Show with six-year-old Caleb, her daughter and niece, when their train became “packed” with football supporters.

The mum-of-two said that Caleb hates loud noise and as the fans began to chant and shout the youngster started to have a “meltdown”.

But she said that a female Merseyrail guard stepped in to make sure he could calm down – and now she wants to find her to say thank-you.

Jessica said: “Caleb was really upset and was having one of the biggest meltdowns I have ever seen him have.

“He hates noise and it makes him really upset.

“He started banging his ears and crying and he actually had his head in his lap and was just rocking back and forward.

“We usually bring ear defenders out for him but I had forgotten all about there being a match on.”

Jessica, a health care assistant, said that the train guard tried to quieten the fans down after she saw Caleb’s distressed state, but when that failed she invited the family into the train cabin.

The mum, who said that Caleb was only diagnosed with autism in January, added: “She was absolutely great with him.

“She asked him all about his interests and was finding out everything about him.

“She just had so much time for him and said that her nephew had autism so she knew what to do.

“It is very rare that someone actually helps and knows what to do, because usually people just stare at him when he is having a meltdown.”

The family were on the train at around noon yesterday from Ormskirk to Liverpool Central and Jessica said that she only caught the guard’s first name – which was Cathy.

Merseyrail plans to axe 220 guard roles due to a new fleet of “driver only” trains, which will be introduced in 2020.

But Jessica said that without the guard on their train, her family’s day out would have been ruined.

She said: “There would have been no way my son would have walked through the crowd of shouting fans to get off at our stop and he would have just been so upset that we would have had to come home.

“But she took us into the cabin and then let us get out of the driver’s door so he didn’t have to go past them all.”