Mum recalls horror after son injured by arrow in Sherwood Forest

James, 17, sustained an eye injury from the back of an arrow during a holiday archery activity

A mum has praised surgeons in Nottingham who operated on her son when an arrow went into his eye during an archery demonstration.

James, 17, and his mum Sara, from Preston, Lancashire, were on holiday in Sherwood Forest when the accident happened three years ago.

Sara said "time slowed down" and that it was "so difficult".

James's treatment featured on a TV hospital documentary on Tuesday after her son had surgery.

Recalling the accident back in September 2021, Sara said James was "crumpled on the floor, clutching his eye with blood pouring out of it".

Sara explained how James was "so scared" and kept saying "what if I will be blind", but because he has autism, he processes emotion and pain differently.

James and his mum Sara featured on 24 Hours in A&E, filmed at the Queen's Medical Centre in Nottingham

She said: "James's thinking is very black and white and he knew not to go near anyone else's arrows."

When the accident happened, James was 15. The instructor, who Sara describes as "wonderful", fired an arrow into his target as a demonstration.

When it was safe to, James bent down to pick up his arrows - but the back of an arrow in the target went into his eye, just above the eyelash band, breaking one of the ocular bones.

'Trepidation'

Sara said: "I was absolutely terrified and upset on the inside, but on the outside, you go into trauma mode.

"When it happened, time slowed down. I just remember getting James into the back of the ambulance."

Sara and James featured on 24 Hours in A&E, which was filmed at the Queen's Medical Centre (QMC) and broadcast on Tuesday.

Sara said they all had some "trepidation" about watching the episode as it transported them back to what they were feeling at the time.

As the show is filmed in advance, James is now in college and has a tiny scar where he was injured.

Sara said: "His sight is fine thanks to the work they did in the hospital... they got him into surgery really fast, the next day."