FUNDRAISERS have bought a special text phone for a Northallerton mum with speech difficulties.
Shelley Knights has no speech but carries a device on which she types out messages on a screen to show others.
Friends raised £450 for the text phone.
It has a keyboard, screen and printer and allows Mrs Knights to type messages to an operator who will pass them on, in speech, to the person she is calling and vice versa.
Val Brown, senior learning adviser at Learn Direct, said: "Shelley is a remarkable lady who has been finding new ways to overcome her disability."
"Learn Direct units have certainly opened up a new world for her with e-mails, message boards and buddy chat.
"But she still needed a special phone to get in touch with friends and family quickly and, if necessary, contact emergency services.
Learn Direct is run by Northallerton College in the careers centre on the High Street and at Bullamoor Primary School.
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