Dad's search to find Tommee Tippee cup for his son with autism ends as the family receive a lifetime supply

A dad’s search for a specific type of Tommee Tippee cup has ended in huge success after the company has promised him a lifetime supply.

Marc Carter launched a social media campaign earlier this month in the hope of finding a plastic cup for his son who has autism.

The dad, who is also a full time carer, took to Twitter in a desperate bid to replace a Tommee Tippee cup that his 14-year-old son has been using since he was two years old.

His son, Ben has a severe form of non-verbal autism and will not drink out of any other cup. However, after years of use the cup was now falling apart, and dad Marc was struggling to find and exact replacement.

In a Twitter post, Marc asked followers to help find an identical cup, explaining that without it, Ben just won't drink.

'Ben hasn't drunk at school since the age of 5, he doesn't drink outside the house so we can't go anywhere. People say he will drink when he's thirsty, but two emergency drips to A&E with severe dehydration will say otherwise.'

But it's now good news for the family! Marc's plea has led to a huge number of donations, while Tommee Tippee has said they will provide the family with 500 cups after searching through factories around the world for the original mould.

A spokesperson for Tommee Tippee announced: 'Today we are delighted to confirm that we are able to start production on a run of the original cup.'

'This will ensure that Ben has a lifetime supply and that his family won't ever have to worry about finding another cup for Ben.'

Marc previously urged members of the public to donate their used cups of the same make and colour, as Ben's blue Tommee Tippee cup had stopped being made, and the family were struggling to find a new one.

'These cups are not made anymore', he said. 'The replacements are all new and fancy, we've tried them, Ben throws them at us.'

He added: 'Maybe you have one stuck at the back of a cupboard? It can be used, that's fine, the one he has doesn't have long left. In all honesty we are really worried what will happen if it falls apart completely.

Since Marc posted the plea, a huge number of people have replied sharing pictures of their own Tommee Tippee cups, trying to help him find a match. Even Tommee Tippee shared a tweet of their staff searching through boxes to find the cup for Ben.

Marc later posted an update saying 'thank you to everyone for tying so hard to help my little man – it has genuinely moved me to tears, it's incredible that you all want to help. Thank you.'

He also revealed that thanks to the Twitter request, suitable cups are now being sent to the family, adding that he needed to get as many as possible, as the cups will need to last for the whole of Ben's life.

Marc said: 'I've got some coming, some as in enough to last us a few years, so if that's all I get then that's great. No it's amazing. Thank you.'

'The reality is Ben is unlikely to change, so I will need these for the rest of his life. That's a lot of cups. It's got to be easier to collect them now than try in 10 years, less will be around then.'

How lovely to hear that Marc’s campaign got him the result he needed, and the family will now have plenty of cups for Ben!