Green light as Leeds car dealer gives autistic boy a lift to school prom in £60,000 supercar.

Ten year-old Luke Tarbuck was whisked to the Templenewsam Halton Primary School year six end of year celebration in a £60,000 plus Jaguar XJ.

His mother Niki Tarbuck had earlier contacted the Farnell Jaguar Land Rover Leeds dealership in Sheepscar to ask if they knew of any Jaguar car hire companies in the area as Luke has been a fan of the classic British car since he was old enough to play with cars.

But, the firm was all geared up to drive Luke, who is on the autism spectrum, in one of its own supercars to the bash at Whitkirk Cricket Club along with his class mate Lucy.

Mrs Tarbuck said: “I will never forget the look on his face and I know that he will never forget it.”

She had kept the treat and the fact his friend Lucy, also aged ten, was coming along too a secret from the youngster to make it even more of a surprise.

The mother from Halton added: “I was completely blown away by the generosity of the dealership.

“I was looking for advice on where we could hire a car, as a special surprise for Luke, and did not expect the response to be ‘we’ll take you ourselves’, so I am extremely grateful.

“Today, it is so rare to get excellent customer service, so I am seriously impressed. The team has gone completely above and beyond to make Luke’s night so special.”

Farnell’s Younis Khan did the honours for the two mile drive in style to the prom which had been organised by parents of the year 6 children.

Robert Jones from the Farnell Jaguar garage off Stonegate Road said: “We want to be very active where the community is concerned by trying to give something back and when Niki’s email came in with Luke’s story, we were more than happy to help.

“Luke is a real brand fanatic and expert when it comes to Jaguar.

“He certainly has good taste and I am sure that he approved of his ride on the night.”

Luke’s interest in cars and the Jaguar make is a symptom of autism where the person uses it as a way of structure, a source of happiness and also as a tool in social situations to start conversation and to feel more confident.

The model that Luke travelled to his school prom in features an eight speed gearbox, can reach a top speed of 150mph and 60 mph in less than six seconds and will set you back £62, 360 to get it on the road.