THE mum of a little boy who lost his legs to meningitis has written a poem helping people identify the early signs of the virus.

Two-and-a-half-year-old Louie Jenkins, of Chatham Street, Colne, had both his legs amputated from below the knee after contracting meningococcal septicaemia.

He also lost the fingers on his left hand and the tips of the fingers on his right hand, but earlier this year he amazed his family by starting to walk again using prosthetic legs.

Now mum Julie, 31, has written a poem, which she is handing out with cards detailing the early signs and symptoms of meningitis.

She said: “Hopefully the poem and cards will help people see what the early signs are and get it treated quickly.

“A lot of the symptoms are similar to things that you do get in the winter but if you see three or four together then that is the time to get it checked.

“If you can get treated before a rash appears then that is important.”

So far the poems have been handed out at Park Primary School, in Colne, St Michael’s Primary School, Foulridge, St Thomas’s play group, in Barrowford, and Innisfree Child Care, in Langroyd Road, Colne.

“We have had really positive feedback,” said Julie. “Teachers at St Michael’s said it would really help them understand the signs, which is the point of the poem.”

Since taking his first steps in February Louie has gone from strength to strength on his new legs.

Julie added: “He is doing fantastically well. It has given him a real boost of life and he has so much confidence now when he is inside. It is great to see.”