Ref. 12022/5EIGHT weeks after his son was born with a rare condition that has left his skull misshapen and his fingers and toes fused together, 34-year-old Army sergeant Andrew Trueman has been told he is to lose his job.

Sgt Trueman, 34 and his wife Wendy, 24, were crushed when their beloved son Thomas was born with the disfiguring Apert Syndrome in November.

But that grief was to be further compounded last week, when they learned that the Army was doing a U-turn over Andrew's terms of employment, medically discharging him and leaving him without a career and his family without a home, when they need it most.

Sgt Trueman, who is based at Buckley Barracks in Hullavington, went before an Army medical board in July after being medically downgraded for a condition similar to flat feet.

A soldier for 11 years, he sustained the injury while playing rugby in the late 90s and suffers pain in his legs when he stands for too long.

But the Army medical panel told him that the desk-bound nature of his job as a supply controller meant that he could rely on a further ten years of service.

However, a change in Army policy, announced in December, has now reversed that decision, unfit to carry on with his role in the Army.

The announcement could not have come at a worse time for the Truemans.

"We just can't believe this has happened after what's just happened with our baby," said Mr Trueman.

"It makes you think, what is the point of working so hard for the Army, when you get treated like this? It seems that someone I don't even know has made the decision that I am useless.

"I now have to get a job in civvy street, which I can do, but our baby is going to be in and out of hospital for years and I don't know what kind of employer is going to understand when I tell them that I might need all that time off to care for my child."

Mrs Trueman added: "Thomas's condition was not diagnosed before he was born, so the first clue we had that something was wrong, was when we saw him after the delivery.

"The pregnancy had been a worrying time, as Andrew had to go in front of the medical board, but when he was assured that he had ten years left, we started to plan our future and look forward to the baby.

"Now he is about to lose his job, his career and his pension, on top of the worry about Thomas we don't know what to do."

Apert Syndrome only occurs in one in 60,000 births and Thomas is the only case currently recorded in Wiltshire.

The condition is believed to develop when the tenth chromosome in a foetus, mutates. It results in abnormal growth of the skull and face and partial fusion of fingers and toes. Thomas's head has grown longer, instead of rounder and there are risks that if not operated on, his skull could crush his brain as it grows.

Surgeons have told his parents that he will need up to 25 operations in the next 20 years.

"Our commanding officer here at Buckley Barracks has been great and is trying to find out if we have any options, but it looks like our only real option is to move to Manchester, where we can get support from our family," said Mr Trueman.

The Truemans, who each have another child from a previous marriage, are also seeking legal advice about how Thomas's condition went undetected before his birth at Bath's Royal United Hospital.

A spokesman from Buckley Barracks, said: "We will be doing whatever we can before Sgt Trueman is discharged and afterwards, to help him settle back into civvy street."

A statement released by the Ministry of Defence said the policy had not in fact been changed, but was currently under review. Refusing to comment on individual cases, it added that service personnel who had been medically downgraded, were being dealt with on a case by case basis.