Express & Star

Take that! Pupil throws pie at teacher

It's a moment any pupil would have relished - the chance to smash a custard pie into their teacher's face - but for young Tyler Price there was an added bonus.

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The nine-year-old from Walsall was raising awareness of type 1 diabetes, a condition which nearly killed him two years ago, and raising money for the charity which helps sufferers into the bargain.

So the pie-throwing stunt at his school, Christ Church Primary, had the full permission of his victim, head teacher Sean Davies. The challenge raised £100 alone from the Friends of Christ Church and a collection box at the school is full to the brim.

Tyler was the first to experience a pie in his face when he asked his dad to do the honours and posted the video on his Facebook page with a personal statement explaining why he was doing it.

The youngster, of Bagnall Street, Leamore, was inspired by the Ice Bucket Challenge craze which has raised almost £7million for the Motor Neurone Disease Association and hopes he might do the same for Diabetes UK.

Posting his own feat on social media, he promptly challenged his parents, aunty and both grandparents to follow suite.

Christ Church primary school pupil Tyler Price age 9 launches a campaign to fight diabetes from which he suffers

His mother Leah Russell, 42, said: "It was touch and go whether Tyler would survive.because he was diagnosed so late. He presented with flu-type symptoms and our GP treated him for a viral infection because he seemed to pick up every bug going. He also lost about a stone and a half in weight.

"It wasn't until we thought he was having an asthma attack that we realised that something was really wrong. The paramedics said his body was trying to breathe away the sugar. His organs were shutting down, we nearly lost him.

"That's why it's really vital to get the message out to families and GPS so that they can pick up symptoms before it gets to that critical stage."

Tyler has a heightened awareness of the condition after the death of his grandmother Tina Russell aged just 41 from complications due to her diabetes.

He has addressed his school assembly twice on the subject and is now hoping pie-throwing will go viral to help spread his message further afield.

He also has links to diabestes-related websites on his Facebook page at 100006904907907@facebook.com .

His mother said: "He's got a very old head on young shoulders."

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