My little angel is a real fighter

Watching angelic Lauren Booth walk down the stairs in her bottle green school uniform for the first time was a poignant moment for her parents Paul and Lisa-Jayne.

On a cold dark Sunday night in 2001, six-week-old Lauren contracted deadly meningitis - and Mr and Mrs Booth were told their precious daughter might not pull through. But Lauren's a little fighter, and just four years later she is full of beans and preparing for her first day at Queen's Crescent School in Chippenham.

"We're all planning to go and wave her off," said Mrs Booth, 35. "It's a day we never thought we'd see. I'm sure there will be a few tears."

Although Lauren survived her battle with the deadly virus, she has been left with multiple disabilities and the last few years have been far from a bed of roses for her family.

Their nightmare began when a mother's instinct told Mrs Booth something wasn't quite right with her newborn daughter.

"I can't put my finger on what it was, but she wasn't herself," said Mrs Booth. "As it was a Sunday I took her to Chippenham hospital. A doctor there said it was nothing to worry about and sent us home again.

"Four hours later, something was still niggling at me and I took her back again. They must have thought I was mad, and told me to go away and give her some Calpol."

But as the couple sat watching their treasured daughter sleep, she started having fits and was rushed back into hospital.

"Paul stayed at home with our son Aaron and I went with Lauren to the Royal United Hospital in Bath with blue flashing lights," remembered Mrs Booth.

"It was the most awful time of my life. I had no idea what was wrong with her and was beside myself. I could have taken the doctor's advice and put her to bed and would have never known she was fitting. We could have woken up to a very different story the next morning."

Mrs Booth warned other parents not to wait for the tell-tale rash before taking a meningitis scare seriously.

"All the adverts you see say wait for a rash to appear, but not all strains of meningitis have a rash. Lauren's didn't."

When Lauren got to the hospital she stopped breathing and had to be resuscitated. Devastated, all Mrs Booth could do was stand back and watch.

Experts then diagnosed Lauren with meningitis, and warned Mrs Booth to expect the worst.

Mr Booth hurried to the hospital and the pair kept a bedside vigil as their daughter lay helpless, hooked up to all kinds of monitors in intensive care.

"She was on 15 minute observations and had fans everywhere to keep her temperature down," recalled Mrs Booth. "It didn't look good, and we were told the next 24 hours would be critical for Lauren. I felt like my world was falling apart. I wouldn't wish that on my worst enemy."

Over the next couple of days Lauren's condition seemed to improve, but then she took a critical turn for the worse.

"She went downhill very quickly and was fitting all day," said Mrs Booth. "Doctors said the virus was all over her brain and they couldn't control it. It was very scary.

"Lauren was so tiny and looked like a little dolly with all the equipment around her. I couldn't believe this was happening to us."

It took experts two-and-a-half weeks to find a medicine that stopped her seizures. Mr and Mrs Booth expected their daughter's quality of life to be severely damaged by all she had been through.

"We were told she wouldn't walk and that she could be brain damaged, but she's proved everybody wrong," said Mrs Booth.

Lauren, now four, is profoundly deaf and the left side of her body is extremely weak, giving her similar symptoms to a stroke.

She wears special red boots to support her ankles and is now trying a hearing aid.

Her speech and language is delayed by around 18 months and paediatricians are now querying whether she has any sense of taste or smell.

The Booth family's world has been turned upside down by Lauren and the dedication she needs to thrive.

"It's been very hard, especially for Aaron. He was only three-and-a-half when she was ill and suddenly his mummy wasn't giving him any attention. He had to grow up very quickly.

"I've totally changed too. I wouldn't say boo to a goose before this, but I've had to change to make things happen for Lauren's sake. You don't get anywhere by sitting in a corner and not asking for help. It's made me a much stronger person.

"Apart from that, our whole outlook on life was transformed. We realised life's not a rehearsal, and you have to treat each day as if it's your last."

Two years ago Lauren's physiotherapist referred her to Springboard Opportunity Group, the only pre-school in North Wiltshire for children with special needs.

Mrs Booth said: "The first time we went I came home feeling like a fraud. There were all these other children much worse off than Lauren, yet I was taking up a space."

But she was soon made to realise that Lauren needed to be at Springboard, and had to face up to the fact that she had a disabled child.

"That's when it really hit home," she said. "Up until then I think I was in denial. It was such a hard thing to cope with."

The cash-strapped pre-school, which is based at Frogwell School in Chippenham, is a lifeline for dozens of other children like Lauren - but each year has to struggle to keep going.

This year it launched an appeal to help raise at least £40,000, or warned it may have to cut the number of children's places available by up to half.

Mrs Booth said: "It's unjust that somewhere as important as Springboard has to fight for funds. I've got no doubt in my mind that Lauren wouldn't be where she is today without it.

"Meningitis robbed me of a normal little girl, but Springboard has helped give that back to some extent. It's like our extended family. It's given her a huge amount of confidence, and taught her Makaton, a special sign language for children. Now the whole family uses it to help her communicate. Before, she got frustrated because she couldn't express herself, but there's no stopping her now."

A year ago Mrs Booth helped found the Friends of Springboard - a group of mums that raises vital cash for the pre-school.

"It started out with just four of us and now we've got about ten," said Mrs Booth. "It's a social thing as much as anything else, it's our escape route. The meetings give us time to talk about our problems with other people in the same boat."

The committee has so far raised over £1,000 towards the Springboard Appeal, and Mrs Booth has raised a further £6,500 towards the Lauren Booth Appeal for the RUH.

Although Lauren has now left Springboard, Mrs Booth is still involved in the organisation of a black-tie ball at the start of December.

"It's the first ever Springboard ball, so will be a really special event," she said. "Hopefully it will be the biggest fundraiser of the year." Tickets costing £30 will be available in the next couple of months.

"We are all sad that Lauren's left Springboard, but she's starting out on her own little adventure now. Springboard has turned a girl who could have sat in a corner and let life pass her by into a bubbly, vibrant youngster. I just want to thank them for helping her shine."