A GREENOCK youngster who was born seven weeks early was chosen to switch on the Christmas lights at the Royal Hospital for Children.

James Proudfoot, 12, joined other children who needed special neo-natal care in the three Greater Glasgow hospitals, including Ruby Dailly, the star of this year's John Lewis Christmas advert.

The Notre Dame pupil weighed just 3lb when he was born at the Royal Alexandra in Paisley and needed specialist help to breathe and feed.

His family have two reasons to thank medics this Christmas after they also provided life-saving care for his baby brother Oscar, who arrived 11 weeks before his due date.

James said: "It was really exciting, a very special day."

His mum Sharon told the Tele the occasion was an emotional one.

Sharon, 35, said: "James has Asperger's so I wasn't sure how he would cope but he got up on stage and loved every second of the limelight.

"He got a toy, a goodie bag and a book, which he has been reading to his little brother.

"The whole day brought a tear to my eye."

Sharon featured in the Telegraph when we told of Oscar's fight for life.

He spent the first eleven weeks of his life in hospital before being allowed home with his own oxygen supply.

Sharon suffered from reverse blood flow which meant that he was getting less blood flow that he should and his heart rate dropped so far that doctors had to deliver him 11 weeks premature and weighing just 2lb 4oz.

Abigail Stein, who works for the Glasgow Children's Hospital charity saw the story and asked if James would help with the switch-on as he was treated in the neo-natal unit at the RAH.

Sharon, who lives with husband David and the two boys in Sutherland Road, said: "The team were looking for older children who had come through the unit to show how important these facilities are."

Sharon who had suffered from pre-eclampsia, said: "James was on oxygen for a little while, similar to Oscar, but not as bad.

"I've never had a baby that hasn't been through one of these units.

"They need life-saving equipment, especially at the RAH. So many babies from Inverclyde pass through these units as more often than not Inverclyde babies are now delivered in Paisley."

James is looking forward to his first Christmas with Oscar, who will soon be six months old.

He said: "It will be so exciting to spend my first Christmas with him."

Sharon said: "Oscar is the best present ever. I have no doubt that doctors wouldn't have been able to save his life without these units and it allowed James to develop the way he did. If he hadn't been treated so well and so quickly he would have been starved of oxygen."

The mum has also bravely spoken of the tragic loss of her other sons Ethan and Lucas. She has to endure delivering her stillborn son Ethan in 2015 and a year later gave birth to Lucas, who same high risk condition as Oscar.

He was born 14 weeks early at the Princess Royal Hospital and only weighed a pound. Tragically he contracted sepsis and died at just three weeks and six days.

She hopes to hold a charity night after Christmas to help raise money for the hospital fund and has all the boys' names on decorations on her Christmas tree.

Sharon said: "If it hadn't been for these neo-natal units I wouldn't have been able to bring Oscar home.

"I don't think the staff realise how much they mean to us."

For more information about the charity visit www.glasgowchildrenshospitalcharity.org/

James was joined by other former patients Ruby Dailly, 10, from Neilston, Olive Marshall-Reilly, six, from Thornliebank, and Clara Healy, two, from Cumbernauld.