Schoolboy gets new life-changing bionic arm funded by plumber

A young schoolboy given a new life-changing £13,000 bionic arm shook hands with the plumber who funded it.

Seven-year-old Alex Sparks was born without a right forearm and had been on an NHS prosthetic waiting list for more than three years.

After spending birthdays ‘wishing’ for it to grow back, his parents, Dionne and Robin, decided to fundraise for a motorised prosthetic arm for him.

When James Anderson, a 52-year-old plumber from Burnley, founder of Depher Plumbing Services, heard about the fundraiser, he fulfilled the target by making a single payment.

James met Alex in his hometown of Oswaldtwistle, Lancashire where the youngster got to try out his new arm by doing a ‘high five’, a ‘tickle’ and a ‘squeeze’.

Watching in amazement as the motors in Alex’s arm whirred, James said: “Wow! That’s absolutely amazing mate! Honest to God.”

Alex had never enjoyed wearing prosthetics until he tried the Black Panther themed ‘Hero Arm’ and his family say his face ‘lit-up’ as he was able to make it move.

The device, made by Open Bionics in Bristol — a company that 3D prints prosthetic limbs — uses sensors to register muscle movements in the upper arm and turn those into hand motions.

Alex told ITV News about ‘loads of things’ he now wants to do with his new bionic arm, saying: “I want to brush my teeth, reel-in a rod when I fish and play with two hands.

“Play catch and learn how to draw with this [bionic] hand because I can draw with [the other] hand.”

James’ Burnley-based social enterprise firm Depher, has helped many elderly and vulnerable people in need.

Originally setup to give free plumbing work to elderly and disabled individuals, it now provides wider support and food parcels.

The plumber explained he chose to pay for Alex’s arm as he could see the schoolboy’s ‘strength in his eyes’.

He said: “When I saw that he needed this so he could go fishing with his Dad, go bike-riding and play football – just do the normal things that a child would do with his mates outside – I immediately fell in love with it.

“You could see the strength inside of him, You could see the strength in his eyes. It was a no brainer. I transferred the money to the bank and said, ‘there you go, it’s done’.”

In a mobile phone video of the touching moment, James shows Alex the receipt and asks: “Do you know what that means?” Alex replied: “No.” 

James then says: “That means I’ve just paid for your new arm. So, hopefully, sooner rather than later you’re going to go fishing with your Dad.”

To which Alex cheers and fills up with tears of joy.

Dionne and Robin are now hoping Alex’s new arm will bring him a brighter, happier future and allow him to do all the things he would like to do in life.

His dad Robin said:  “We’re looking forward to him becoming an independent and outgoing seven year old.

“One that he doesn’t always have to keep looking back towards where his mum and dad are for help. Where he could just go forward and enjoy his life.”

The family are extremely grateful and can’t thank James enough as Dionne described James as an ‘incredible man’, adding: “He’s just helping so many people, whether it’s his food banks or his plumbing.

“He’s just one man helping loads of people. The world definitely needs more James Andersons. It really does.”

Alex’s new bionic limb is a little longer than his arm allowing him room to grow until he reaches his mid-teens, where he will need a replacement arm to match his size.