Sam Bailey has opened up about the taunts her son has faced since he was diagnosed with autism.

The X Factor winner’s 11-year-old son Tommy was diagnosed with the condition back in July after Sam began to suspect traits and behaviours he had for years related to autism.

When he told his friends and classmates about his autism, Tommy was cruelly mocked by one child who said he had a “brain malfunction”.

Speaking exclusively to Mirror Online, Sam, 43, has revealed the way she has “celebrated” Tommy’s diagnosis with him as she “clears the path” for him to live a happy life with autism.

Sam told us: “When I told him I said ‘Tommy, things are gonna be so much better for you now because we have an understanding of who you are, and we’re going to do everything we can to help you.’

“There are cruel kids out there and someone said something on the bus to him, saying ‘You’ve got a brain malfunction’ and he really took it hard.