Asda manager praised for letting boy with terminal cancer pick anything from shop as community rallies

Nova Yates was just two years old in July 2020 when he started to lose his balance and the left side of his face started to droop, his mum Heather, 26, told the YEP.

After being rushed to hospital at the height of lockdown, Nova underwent a huge array of tests before an emergency 10 hour operation after a growth was found on his brain.

Due to the location of the growth and main blood vessels being entangled, Nova became an inpatient and spent the next 10 days recovering in hospital.

Following an "anxious" eight week wait for his parents Heather and Danny, Nova was diagnosed with an extremely rare form of brain cancer.

His case has been sent around the world to be assessed by doctors and he has spent the majority of the last two years in hospital.

However, Heather and Danny, from Bramley, have this week been given the devastating news that Nova's cancer is now terminal and he has been given just months to live.

The news has devastated the family and hundreds of friends and families who have tracked his valiant fight against his condition in the next two years.

Now, Heather - who has been by her son's side throughout his hospital treatment in lockdown, never leaving his side - has set up a fundraiser to enable Nova to have the best experiences possible in the time he has left.

The community has raised more than £8,000 in just a few days.

In an amazing moment for the family on a recent trip to ASDA Pudsey, the manager called Nova over and told him he could have his pick of anything in the shop on him.

"After a long thought and lots of input from his sister Zarah, he decided on the garden swing", Heather told the YEP.

"We couldn’t thank the manager and colleagues enough."

Many offers of support have been offered to Nova's family following a previous article, with Yorkshire Wildlife Park, Alton Towers and a dinosaur expert all offering their services to help the family.

Heather said Nova is "getting on well" and she was very thankful for all of the support.

Her original post revealing the devastating diagnosis has been shared hundreds of times and many across Leeds have sought to help the family.

To donate to the fundraiser, click here.