A ROSYTH schoolboy and his classmates donned red yesterday to mark World Encephalitis Day.

Frankie Haddow and his fellow pupils at Camdean Primary showed their colours to help raise awareness of the condition, which the 11-year-old was diagnosed with just before his second birthday.

Having been a happy, healthy little boy, he had become ill suddenly and was diagnosed with Acute Disseminated Encephalomyelitis, which left him paralysed from the neck down for two weeks.

The condition attacks the spinal cord and central nervous system and left Frankie paralysed from the neck down for two weeks. He faced a long recovery process and defeated the odds by walking into his first day at primary school.

However, his physical health has since deteriorated because the virus caused so much nerve damage and deformed his bones. Back in 2019, a massive £15,000 was raised to buy the youngster an electric wheelchair which has helped him flourish and keep up with his classmates.

Mum Nicola said the set of wheels had made a "massive difference" to her boy's life.

"He gets to school no bother now and he is able to keep up with his friends in the playground," she said. "He started going to a youth club one night a week with his friends. He is quite a social butterfly is Frankie. He loves all the banter.

"He is doing really well. He is awaiting a big operation which has been delayed and delayed to sort his bladder and bowels so he has a difficult time coming up.

"He has got the big operation and the catchment changes means he is going to a different high school than his friends but there is not much we can do about that. He is so good and gets on with everything that comes in his path.

"He is just getting on with stuff."

After he explained about World Encephalitis Day last year during online learning, Frankie has since been helping to raise more awareness about the condition and the day.

He has already created an informative poster and his class made wristbands to go with their red clothing.

“I want to raise awareness about encephalitis because not a lot of people know about it," said Frankie. "By knowing the symptoms, you could save a life.”

Proud mum Nicola was delighted that her son had been so keen to share his story.

"He had researched it and had got all these amazing facts and the school decided to run with it," she added. "He is more than happy to talk about it."