‘It’s so much easier to move in the water’ - Scoliosis patient Lauren Ferris

Lauren Ferris had a rib and a disc removed and three rods inserted, held in place by 19 screws, to correct the curve in her spine that suddenly appeared last year, putting an end her twin loves of dancing and karate.

It’s no wonder the 14-year-old, from Midleton, Co Cork, can’t wait to get back in the swimming pool, where activity is painless.

Lauren is one of more than 150 children nationwide signed up to the world’s first tailored swim programme for pre- and post-surgical juvenile scoliosis patients — a good news story in the wake of a slew of negative reports around surgery waiting times for children with severely curved spines.