Sketty teen with cerebral palsy walks for first time with exoskeleton

Cerebral palsy, external affects about one in 400 children in the UK, according to the NHS.

It is a developmental disability that affects movement and co-ordination.

Brooke has been attending physiotherapy sessions at Equinox Physiotherapy clinic in Cross Hands, Carmarthenshire, for over a year and was one of the first children to take part in the trial.

It was the first time Brooke’s parents, Andrew and Rebecca Hacker, had ever seen her walk.

Brooke’s mother, Rebecca Hacker said: “We’ve never seen Brooke walk like that before, to see her enjoy is incredible.”

Andrew said they are “extremely proud” of Brooke’s progress.

“She’s an amazing young girl, she’s intelligent, she knows what she wants. I always tell her the world’s her oyster, if you work hard you’ll go a long way, and she’s doing very much just that.”

Using the robot, Brooke’s four-year-old sister Holly was able to run alongside her.

Rebecca said she never thought she would see the siblings running together, describing it as “incredible”.