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'It's magical watching him swim with a ventilator'

BBC Mum Shevonne and teacher Kayleigh support Henry, six, in the blue water of a swimming pool. All three are smiling. Henry has a tube attached to his neck which runs up towards the side of the pool. Shevonne wears a black swimsuit, while Kayleigh wears a blue T-shirt.BBC
Henry in the pool with his mum, Shevonne, left, and teacher Kayleigh Mason

A boy has learned to swim despite being attached to a ventilator 24 hours a day.

Henry was born with multiple medical conditions and needs help to breathe through a tube in his neck.

But the six-year-old, from Bridlington, East Yorkshire, has grown so confident in the pool that he now has his 5m swimming badge.

His mum, Shevonne, 39, said: "It's just phenomenal – we're so happy seeing him enjoying his life."

To allow Henry to swim, a carer wears a backpack containing the ventilator and walks alongside the pool holding a 4m-long (13ft) tube.

Henry sits on a float in a swimming pool, supported by Kayleigh and watched by Shevonne. A woman stands at the side of the pool. She is dressed in a black top and a long, leopard-print skirt and wears a black backpack containing a ventilator. She holds a long tube, which is attached to the backpack and runs to Henry, where it is attached to his neck.
A carer wears the ventilator in a backpack and follows Henry around the pool

Henry was rushed to Great Ormond Street Hospital aged five weeks for open heart surgery.

He needs ventilation because a lung and his airways have not grown properly.

Despite the challenges, he goes to school and finished joint-first in the sprint on sports day.

"We have to run alongside carrying the ventilator, but it's just amazing he can do all the things that he can," said Shevonne.

"It's very simple things, but they mean so much to us."

Henry, who is wearing goggles, prepares to push off from the edge of the pool with Kayleigh and Shevonne either side of him. The carer stands behind them at the side of the pool and holds the tube connecting the ventilator to Henry's neck.
Henry is training for his 10m swimming badge

Despite his achievements, the family thought Henry would be unable to swim because of the complexities of his breathing apparatus.

He has tapes around a tracheostomy in his neck and Shevonne had been advised not to get them wet in case water entered the lungs.

However, when his younger brother began swimming lessons with teacher Kayleigh Mason, Henry asked her if he could learn, too.

Shevonne, an occupational therapist, began to look at ways to manage the risk, which included consulting Great Ormond Street.

'Magical' achievement

"When we came to being in the pool, he had a big life vest on, we kept him fully out of the water," she said.

Over time, "with more splashes and more water going there", the family grew in confidence.

"We work together to manage the risks and it means that he can independently swim," Shevonne added.

Kayleigh, of the Puddle Ducks group, made adjustments to her lesson plans to allow Henry to take part. But he soon exceeded all expectations.

"That's just how he lives life", she said. "He's free in the water. It's magical."

Shevonne said she hoped their story might help other families to gain confidence with daily life tasks, such as showering their children or washing their hair at home.

As for Henry, the next challenge is to get his 10m badge. "I just love it," he said. "It's amazing."

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