THE birth of a child is a joyous moment.

But one in every 700 births will result in a child born with a cleft lip or palate...or both.

For many, the extent of their child’s facial deformity will be unknown until their birth.

That child could then face years of surgery to correct the cleft and its associated effects, such as feeding difficulties, dental abnormalities and speech problems.

This is what happened to Simon Jackson and his family.

But Mr Jackson, 27, from Abingdon, says he wouldn’t have had it any other way.

“Growing up, my sister Emma was three years older than me, and we both went to Sandhills County Primary School. Children in my class asked me why I looked different to everyone else and Emma would just say: ‘There is nothing wrong, he’s just a little different’.”

He was born with a cleft lip and palate, which meant his top lip and the roof of his mouth were incomplete.

Luckily for Mr Jackson and his parents Laurie and Tony, they lived in Oxfordshire – home to the former Radcliffe Infirmary and the John Radcliffe Hospital, pioneers in the treatment of clefts.

As a baby he embarked on a series of painful surgical procedures which would last well into his 20s.

This included a bone graft from his hip at the age of 13 (to help with the growth of his teeth); a rhinoplasty (nose reconstruction at 16-17 years), wearing braces for five years between 13 and 18, further nasal reconstruction at 18 and jaw reconstruction at 24.

But instead of beamoaning his lot in life, Mr Jackson, who works in car manufacturing, believes his clefts made him a stronger person.

He added: “I had some really good friends who would visit me after I had had an operation and also help me by bringing schoolwork home for me.

“Sometimes I found it difficult to return to school after a break from the classroom, especially after my first major operation as a teenager.

“But like many children today I faced challenges and mine was fitting this (his treatment) in with schooling and also living with the pain.”

Recalling his teenage years at Wheatley Park School, Mr Jackson seems hesitant.

“This is when I had the bulk of the operations and I think it’s when the attitudes of children start to develop.”

But his years at Rycotewood College and then Hertfordshire University were far happier.

He continued: “I have had the constant support of all the surgeons and support staff at the JR and the RI before that.

“And throughout my life I have also had lots of support from the whole family.”

Up to 100 patients are referred to the Spires Cleft Centre, based at the JR, each year.

Specialists try to correct clefts and work with the family to meet their social, emotional, psychological and educational needs.

Sandip Popat, 43, a consultant in restorative dentistry at Oxford who was responsible for restoring Simon Jackson’s teeth and smile, organised a charity dinner and auction in aid of the centre’s research fund, at the Nut Tree in Murcott, near Kidlington, last night.