He’s a lad who loves the outdoor life, especially running.
And now Daniel Snee is hoping to put his running skills to good effect by raising £2,500 to take profoundly disabled children on school trips.
Which is a real challenge as Daniel, 16, is registered as deafblind and has a whole host of severe disabilities.
The Fixby teenager is a student at the Royal School Manchester, run by the charity Seashell Trust.
Watch Daniel in training
He has severe development delay, severe autism, sensory processing dysfunction, epilepsy and no speech.
But as part of his silver Duke of Edinburgh award, Dan is combining the sport and charity sections in a sponsored run. The fund will provide for trips and experiences his class friends might not be able to access otherwise.
Allyson Taylor, a teacher at the school, said: “Dan can’t see details and has reduced lower field of vision, which means he can’t see his feet unless he moves his head right down and concentrates for a while.
“Running independently is a huge achievement for him. It helps him to focus and his vision appears to be improving as a result. It also helps him to concentrate in school.”
Dan used to run on the Middlewood Way, a former railway route between Marple and Macclesfield, but it could be unsafe for him as the path is not well defined enough for his impaired vision.
He can, however, see the red of an athletics track with its white lines and the contrast of the grass. Following these, he can run without the need for a sighted guide.
His mum Michelle said: “Daniel loves to run - so much so that he outruns his parents, older sisters, school teachers and staff.
“I don’t understand the science but it really is fantastic seeing Dan do something he enjoys and which, ultimately, helps his development. It is so exciting.”
Michelle and her husband John have two daughters, Laura, 27, and Charlotte, 24, and realised Daniel had problems when he was eight months old.
His hearing means he hears a jumble of sounds and when running, he wears earmuffs to blot out the confusing sounds.
He attended Castle Hill School in Newsome before moving to the Royal Manchester School three years ago, and makes the journey by bus each morning at 7am.
To raise the charity cash, he will be running as far as he can, along with his learning support team, at the athletics track in Woodbank Park, Stockport.
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Michelle said: “Dan has had the most amazing three years at the Royal School Manchester and he is very fortunate to be able to give something back to his friends and community.
“He can only take part in DofE because of the dedicated, creative and talented staff at Seashell Trust. When he was much younger, we never would have thought he would be able to achieve so much - at school and via the Duke of Edinburgh scheme - just look at him now. We are so incredibly proud of him.”
To sponsor Dan please go to: www.virginmoneygiving.com/DanielSnee
