It makes him laugh

Liam Shephard, 13, was born with Pierre Robin sequence, which means he had a small jaw, short tongue and a full cleft palate.

His mother, Sue Shephard, tells his story:

"Liam had three repairs on his palate: his tongue and jaw caught up as he grew. He never talked, just grunted, so we had a teacher come in twice a week when he was about three years old, to teach him Makaton.

"When he was four years old, he started at a special school and they use Makaton a lot, so he picked up a lot of signs. Liam's speech is progressing slowly but steadily: he can now speak a few words, though his vocabulary is limited.

"I wanted him to join the scouts, so I went to see the scout leader to explained his situation, and that he uses Makaton. She said it wasn't a problem, and that she would arrange for the scout leaders to go on a course to learn Makaton, which I thought was brilliant.

"Liam started scouts when he was 11, and he loves it. Especially when the scout leaders are able to communicate with him but the other scouts didn't know what they are saying. It makes him laugh.

"Using Makaton is fun. When we are out and there are a lot of people about, as long as Liam is looking at me, we can sign to each other."

May 2009