A profoundly deaf teenager is set to appear on television to tell his inspirational story.

On Sunday Kurran Doal, 15, will feature in a film hosted by BBC Radio Two presenter Sara Cox highlighting the work of Auditory Verbal UK, a charity that helps pre-school aged deaf children with hearing aids to listen and speak.

Born two months prematurely, the Chigwell resident spent the first two years of his life in hospital where he had three life-saving operations following bouts of severe necroticizing entercolitis.

Just as they believed their lives were stabilising, Kurran’s parents were told their son, who suffers mild cerebral palsy and developmental delay, was profoundly deaf.

His father Avy said: “To be honest, I felt helpless for the first time in my life and I was probably at my lowest ebb.

"Hearing aids made no difference and by the age of four, Kurran still hadn’t uttered a single comprehensive word.”

That year Kurran was fitted with a cochlear implant and his family began working with AVUK in 2007.

Despite having his implant fitted relatively late, Kurran heard his first sound – a doorbell – six months later and said his first word “mummy” aged four-and-a-half.

Avy added: “Discovering Auditory Verbal UK was like finding a huge inflatable balloon full of hope, help and real progress. Every time we went to AV UK, we were inspired and had complete confidence that we were in the safest, expert pair of hands.”

Kurran’s vocabulary is developing every day and he is now able to walk independently, despite having additional needs.

Sara Cox said: “Working with AVUK really highlighted what deaf children can do when they have the support that they need in the first few years of their lives.

“Working in an industry where listening and speaking are crucial to what I do, I can’t imagine the difficulty parents face being told their baby is deaf. But, with crucial support from charities like AVUK, families of deaf children really can see them reach their full potential.”

AVUK’s Lifeline appeal airs on BBC One on Sunday October 14 at 3.35pm.

It will be repeated on BBC Two at 1pm on Wednesday October 17.