A TEENAGER who has suffered mobility problems throughout his life is to feature in a TV show about the support he has received.

Joshua Lowe, from Burslem, has undergone surgery on his feet and legs after being born with a deformity called clubfoot and then later suffering knee problems.

Earlier this year, he began receiving support from Caudwell Children.

Through his links with the Stoke-based organisation, he was asked to appear on a BBC show following families which have been helped by charities.

Film crews from Saints and Scroungers travelled to Stoke-on-Trent in August and also attended an outing with the charity to Camelot theme park, near Chorley in Lancashire.

The programme featuring Joshua, his parents Hannah and Steve, as well as Caudwell Children staff, will be shown at the end of this month.

Joshua, a pupil at Hayward Engineering College in Burslem, said: "I was nervous about being filmed at first, but it got better.

"It will be strange seeing us on television, but I am looking forward to it."

The 14-year-old's first bout of surgery was to correct his clubfoot, where the foot appears rotated at the ankle and faces the wrong way, when he was just nine months old.

He now has to wear orthopaedic shoes.

Just before his 11th birthday, he began having problems with his right knee.

Joshua had a number of scans and it was eventually found that he had misalignment of the hips.

He foot also started rotating again, so he underwent further surgery in February.

Surgeons had to snap his thigh bone and break his shin to put his foot in the right position and then rods, pins and screws were used to keep his bones in place.

It means Joshua can only walk short distances before it becomes painful and he sometimes has to use a wheelchair.

His family found out about Caudwell Children through his school and they now benefit from its family support service.

The service aims to reduce stress in ways such as sorting everyday tasks, assisting with grants and holding trips.

Steve, aged 39, of Anna Walk, said they were pleased to help raise the profile of the charity.

He said: "For the last three years, Josh has spent so much time in hospital that he hasn't had a life. That's not very nice when you're a teenager.

"The service has helped Joshua do things he could never have imagined doing and that has given him a lot of confidence.

"It has also given me and his mum a break.

"It has also made us realise there is a support network out there for us."

Hannah, aged 33, said: "We don't feel like we're on our own with this any more.

"The support network itself is like having another family.

"Whenever we have felt like we're up against a brick wall, Caudwell Children has taken it down."

Joshua and his family were picked by the BBC team when they found they could apply for carers' premium, a benefit which helps pay their rent.

Saints and Scroungers focuses on people abusing the benefits system as well as those, like the Lowe family, who receive help they need.

A spokesman for Caudwell Children said: "We are really excited to have this opportunity to highlight our work.

"Following budget cuts, we hope the show will highlight how crucial services like this are to families."

Saints and Scroungers featuring the Lowes, is on BBC1 at 11am on January 26.