Extra support for parents who have suffered the pain of bereavement at Stepping Hill Hospital is now available with the help of a baby loss charity.

New support bags will now be provided from CRADLE, a registered charity which works with the NHS across the UK, supporting families during very difficult times.

The first set of CRADLE comfort bags were  donated to the hospital during Baby Loss Awareness Week (9th - 15th October.) They are now available for women admitted into hospital experiencing pregnancy loss of up to 23 weeks and 6 days. The bags are a source of comfort and support which include donated essential items such as toiletries and notepads for them to write down questions or thoughts, as well as a “Dear friend” letter with details of how to access support from the charity.

Lucy Royle, Deputy Matron for Gynaecology at Stockport NHS Foundation Trust which runs Stepping Hill Hospital said “Losing a baby is a terrible experience for a mother and the whole family too, and they need and deserve support during this very hard time.  We are very grateful for the extra support these families will now be receiving from CRADLE and we’d like to thank them and everyone who has donated to the comfort bags.”

Kay Crewdson, CRADLE trustee said “To be able to bring our full CRADLE service to Stepping Hill Hospital and to fully support the Healthcare Professionals there is great step forward in providing much needed care for women and families in the area. After suffering an early pregnancy loss at Stepping Hill Hospital in 2017, I know this would have been such an incredible service to have had access to, while being admitted in hospital and once I returned home. CRADLE involve the local community in all of our projects from the Comfort Bags to our Outpatients Service and the ongoing support women receive once they are home is invaluable.”

CRADLE was founded by Louise Zeniou, who had an ectopic pregnancy in 2015. The charity has a national team of early pregnancy loss ambassadors, who all have personal experience of losing a baby. It operates in 40 trusts across the country, providing counselling while also training healthcare professionals to support bereavement care for early pregnancy loss.

­­­The comfort bag project was originally set up to support women who may be admitted to hospital unexpectedly during ectopic pregnancies, but are now available to women admitted into hospital for any type of pregnancy loss, both emergency and planned care. For more information on CRADLE you can contact Louise Zeniou at louise@cradlecharity.org