FOR Harry Maywood’s parents Bryan and Kirsty, Alex Ashburne’s sentencing in court represented closure on a year which has been “devastating, and the most exhausting time of our lives, mentally and physically”.

It was almost exactly a year to the day that Harry, now 20, and his then girlfriend Olivia, 19, were critically injured in a collision near Pelynt, caused by Mr Ashburne’s decision to drive although he was more than two times over the drink-drive limit.

This time a year ago, and for several long weeks afterwards, the Maywoods did not know if their son would live. Harry has made an incredible journey, said his dad, from being unable to walk or speak and having to be fed yoghurt, to where he is today. Harry has been working over the summer at the Seaview and Looe Bay holiday parks and will soon be heading off to Bristol UWE to study. He’s decided to change course from his original Sport Science degree and will now be learning how to become an occupational therapist, a choice he’s made because he wants to be able to help others recover from injury as he was helped himself. Harry will continue to have support from the university and from his therapists: he continues on his journey to recover from neurological injury, and no one knows exactly how long that might take.

“He’ll probably be the only person who’s had his own occupational therapists (OTs) helping him fill in his application form – and he’ll be a ready-made case study for his class mates,” says Bryan. He paid tribute not only to OTs Tim and Jenny who have supported Harry since last autumn, but to the paramedics Pete and Tom, who coordinated the emergency response that awful night, and to all the NHS staff who have been involved. “We have learned a lot about hospitals,” said Bryan, “and everyone that works in the ICU and in the Plym rehab unit at Mount Gould are remarkable.”

Bryan stopped work for a while after the collision and in January, stepped down from his job as headteacher at Launceston College to be able to be there for his son. He and Kirsty, who is also a teacher at Launceston, were at Derriford every day until Harry was discharged. A quiz night organised by the school raised £650 towards the Cornwall Air Ambulance new heli appeal.

“It has been a very long year. The most important thing for us has always been Harry’s welfare,” said Bryan.

“The sentencing has brought a closure to that aspect of it, but I am not sure we have fully come to terms with the emotion of it – the focus has always been on Harry.

“Each minute in ICU is like an hour, and each day like a week.

Alex Ashburne was convicted at Truro Crown Court, and his sentences - two lots of two years for causing injury by dangerous driving, and two months for driving while drunk - will run concurrently.“There’s never been any anger," said Bryan."Kirsty and I both felt quite sad for Alex Ashburne. He made a terrible mistake and regardless of his sentence, he’ll have to live with the consequences for the rest of his life. He won’t see his daughter while he is in prison. I hope he’s helped enough that he never has to drink excessively again. "What I hope is that the attitude to drink driving amongst everyone improves. All of us, whether as friends, or as publicans, must make sure we never allow people to get drunk and get behind the wheel.”