Boy who ‘would never be able to walk’ climbs tallest UK mountain - raising thousands for charity

A seven-year-old from Corby in Northamptonshire has defied the odds by trekking up Ben Nevis.

Caeden Thomson was born 12 weeks premature and has cerebral palsy. Doctors told his parents he would never be able to walk, sit or talk. 

Intensive physiotherapy has ensured that wasn’t the case for Caeden and on Saturday (August 29) he scaled more than 4,000ft to raise £8,000 for the NHS and disability charity Scope. 

He took on the 13-hour climb to give something back because “he was so lucky for all the things he has had in his life.”

Speaking after the climb, Caeden said:

"My body hurts a lot but I'm OK. It was really, really hard. 

"I felt sick and exhausted at the top, and I felt exhausted but happy at the bottom!"

His mum, Lisa, was equally pleased and proud of her son for achieving the feat.

"Caeden is an absolute legend," she said.

 "It was such a massive challenge and much, much harder than any of us expected.

"There were many hard times along the way - from three-quarters of the way up the pathway is just massive boulders and very hard to climb, and even at the top we didn't think he would make it down.

"We are all super-proud of him, he deserves a medal.

 “We all love Caeden so much and can't believe his passion for getting to the top."