This Morning's Alison Hammond fights back tears in tribute to young co-star after sudden deathThis Morning, ITV
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00:00Yeah, however, just over a year ago, Matthew tragically took his own life and his parents, Richard and Christine, have since been campaigning to raise awareness about ADHD and the increased suicide risks that come with that.
00:13Welcome, Christine and Richard. Thank you so much for joining us. We absolutely adored your boy. We loved him, didn't we?
00:21He just had this passion and enthusiasm. And he had funny bones, he was kind, he was caring. You know, we didn't get to meet him an awful lot, like we only met him a few times, but he was a breath of fresh air when he came into the studio.
00:33A real character. Yeah. And he loved coming in. Did he? Yeah. With his passion. And he loved his dopamine as well.
00:40He loved his vacuum cleaners, didn't he? He loved them vacuum cleaners. Yeah. He was so passionate. Oh, yeah.
00:44On the back of working with ADHD UK, we did a conference, a global conference explaining Matthew's story.
00:54And there are risks associated with ADHD, but yeah, equally, there's a powerful story behind it if it's managed properly.
01:01Yeah.
01:01So, we were then asked to join the task force, which is a collection of leading experts, doctors, and also experts by experience, which we're classed as.
01:15And we're hopefully coming up with some recommendations to take this forward.
01:18From our point of view.
01:20And our experience.
01:21What would be those, do you think? Just, I mean, obviously you're not there yet, but like, just the top of your head.
01:26What do you think really needs to change? We need earlier diagnosis. We need earlier screening when a child, as young as possible, because if they're going into secondary years and they've struggled in primary, they're only going to struggle more in secondary years.
01:41And that's when you've got to be organised.
01:45Anything we can do to help in the future, please just come back, talk about it.
01:49Whatever you need, we're here. He was a cherished member of our family.
01:53He loved it.
01:53And by extension, you are.
01:56And the way you're spoken today.
01:57He would be so proud of what you're doing as well.
01:59And you've changed the website for the NHS.
02:02Yeah, we've got that change.
02:04All we can do is hope we can make a difference in Matthew's name.
02:09He'd want that.
02:10Because he would want to be here.
02:12There's no way.
02:13He'd love this.
02:14There's too many stories where children have taken their own life and they've been struggling with ADHD and struggling to get an assessment, a referral.
02:24So we just need to educate ourselves.
02:27Thank you, Richard.
02:28Thank you for coming.
02:29Now, listen, if you have been affected by any of the issues...
02:35I'll see you next time.
02:35Thanks.
02:36Thanks.