THE parents of a five-year-old boy who had to have his right leg amputated at seven-weeks-old, are appealing for donations to buy a special ‘Segway’ type wheelchair that could “transform his life.”

Max Lamb, from Rainford, has to have his right leg amputated shortly after he was born due to a condition called Amniotic Band Syndrome, which is when the unborn baby becomes tangled in the amniotic bands in the womb, restricting blood flow to certain areas.

Max now uses a prosthetic leg but, due to infections caused by the prosthetic, is limited to wheelchair use and crutches, which limits his ability to join in with activities.

However, three weeks ago his parents Chris and Rachel Lamb came across a new machine called ‘The Nino’ which they say could change their son’s life.

Chris Lamb, 40 said: “Max is now awaiting his sixth prosthetic limb but because of complications from his prosthetic irritating his skin this may not be the best for him.

“This leaves him forced to use a wheelchair and crutches nearly all the time, which both have their limitations.

“This is likely to continue as Max gets older as he can only wear the prosthetic limb for a few hours per day.

“After a difficult few months we went for an open day at Forster’s Farm and got talking to Jack (the owner) whose dad runs the UK franchise of a company called Nino Robotics that had these chairs, so Max had a go and just loved it.

“It’s called the Nino and it’s like a Segway as it operates off movements and he just took to it like a duck to water, we have gone back and tried it out several times since and he loves it.

“The independence it gives him is amazing so we decided to look into getting one, but they cost just over £7,000."

Chris runs the Chocoranges campaign each December in memory of his son Elliot who died aged four, just before Christmas 2010.

Since then he has collected Terry’s Chocolate Oranges for staff at Whiston and Alder Hey Hospitals, where his son Elliot was treated as a thank you for the work they do to help others in the festive period.

To donate, visit gofundme.com/getmaxanino.