AN ILMINSTER man who suffered a severe brain injury in a car crash has hit a landmark moment in his recovery.

Will Mieville-Hawkins has landed his first job in nearly three years, as a humanities’ teaching assistant at Bucklers Mead School in Yeovil.

The role has marked a major point in Will’s journey since sustaining life-changing injuries in a car accident on the A303 in April 2016.

Sara Gorrad, the headteacher of Bucklers Mead, said: “I first heard about Will through another Somerset head, Mark Walker at Swanmead, who was very positive about the temporary work he had undertaken.

“Having seen him with a class of students, I decided to offer him a trial period.

“This was a real success, so we have extended it with a further review at Easter. If all goes well, we will extend it again.”

Will, 28, lost the use of his left arm and legs, and suffered cognitive problems following the accident.

Since then he has worked hard with health workers to help with his cognitive difficulties, and has also regained the use of his legs.

Will said: “They have now extended the length of my contract, so it shows that they aren’t just taking me on out of sympathy - I am a valued member of staff.

“My amount of therapy has reduced from about 30 hours a week to about one hour now.

“I still face significant fatigue issues, which have to be managed carefully and the NHS still provides physiotherapy to try and maximise my usage of my left arm and reduce my significant limp.

“I’m still not perfect and my fatigue still affects my planning and decision making.”

Will received a lot of public support when his NHS treatment stopped in March 2017. Somerset residents rallied to raise more than £10,000 overall by the end of April 2017.

Bonnie Bow-Thompson ran the Taunton Marathon raising more than £500, and Will’s personal trainer, Liz Wallis, led 30 other fundraisers on an 18-mile military march.

Will added: “The fundraising has been fantastic. It has allowed me to pay for my occupational therapy, case manager and vocational case manager.

“Additionally, I have been able to pay for a clinical psychologist as well as counselling - both of which have been invaluable.”