A TEENAGE girl who was told she may never learn to read or write has defied the odds by attending mainstream school and becoming a talented pianist.

Lily-Joy Bywaters, 15, of Brighton, has the rare genetic condition 16p11.2 microdeletion, which means a specific region of chromosome 16 is deleted.

The condition affects learning and ability to process information.

When Lily-Joy turned two, her mother Corinne started to worry about her development.

Mrs Bywaters, 52, said: “I knew she wasn’t at the same level as other children. She was slow to start talking.

“I’m French and the doctors told me her speech delay was due to juggling the two languages. I never believed it. I became a teaching assistant at her nursery to see how she was developing.

“I could see she was behaving differently – she wasn’t playing with other children, she was always alone. She also didn’t show emotion, she didn’t sing, dance or play with games like the other children did.”

By the time Lily-Joy was three, she was only saying “mama” and “papa”. Teachers at her primary school reported she would smile and listen, but failed to follow instructions.

Corinne said: “At school they told me she was the perfect child, she would sit down with a smile on her face. She didn’t understand, and she would hide that with a smile.”

She was diagnosed when she was seven. Despite her challenges, she has found a love of gymnastics and piano. Mrs Bywaters said: “Lily-Joy is a clever child. She has won 20 medals and two trophies in gymnastics, and is now working towards her Grade 4 piano.

“She is attending Patcham High School. She is studying for her GSCEs. She did a mock exam this year.

“While she received average results, this indicates she is on the right track with her studies.

“She has another year to learn to get better results. Her favourite subject is maths – she enjoys subjects that don’t involve much talking.

“Lily-Joy doesn’t speak much, her sentences are very short. She says a few words. I understand her well, but some people may not.

“She is in the process of being assessed for autism. She’s really good at hiding her disability and has learnt from a very young age.

“I was told girls with autism learn tricks so if you don’t know her you wouldn’t think she has a disability.

“She is very hard-working, I pay for extra lessons after school. Lily-Joy did manage to read and write and do all the things doctors said she would not be able to do.

“When she plays piano at concerts, everybody enjoys her music. I believe if kids have a passion, you should put all your work into that.”

16p11.2 microdeletion affects one in 3,333 people in the general population.

Mother Corinne Mrs Bywaters said: “I was recalled by my paediatrician, who thought he had had made an error measuring Lily-Joy’s head circumference.

"In the second test, he discovered her head had not grown in line with her age which indicated slow growth. A genetic test was carried out and Lily-Joy was diagnosed with 16p11.2 .

“I want to raise awareness of children’s genetic disorders with the UK children’s charity Genetic Disorders UK and their annual fundraising day, Jeans for Genes Day. It takes place on September 21 this year.”

To support Lily-Joy and Corinne, go to jeansforgenesday.org.