'We're so grateful': Families of poorly Preston babies to benefit from being in Ted’s Bubble
A family who were given devestating news their baby was going to die while sat in a storeroom, have raised funds so no other parents have to experience the same thing.
Ted Roocroft was transferred to the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit (NICU) at Royal Preston Hospital’s Sharoe Green Maternity Unit, when he became poorly shortly after his birth in April 2022.
He was cared for there until he passed away four weeks later. Ted’s parents, Dave and Hayley Roocroft, of Charnock Richard, had to face the devastation of being told they were going to lose their first born in a clinical, multi-purpose room that was also used as an equipment store room and for premature baby eye screening.
Determined no other families should have to receive such difficult news or grieve in such an environment, Dave and Hayley began fundraising for Baby Beat to have the room completely re-modeled and re-decorated.
Through their annual Ted’s Ride, a cycle event which they launched to coincide with Ted’s first birthday in April 2023, they have raised £27,704.75 for Baby Beat, of which £9,957 has been spent on making Ted’s Bubble Room to design guidelines recommended by pregnancy and baby loss charity SANDS, another cause the couple have supported, and outlined within the National Bereavement Care Plan.
Hayley said: “We think the room looks great. We were kept updated on its progress. We are very grateful to everyone, who has taken part in Ted’s Ride and everyone, who has helped us to fundraise. ”
Joanna Allitt, fundraising manager for Baby Beat, said: “Dave and Hayley’s fundraising for Baby Beat has been phenomenal. They have been so selfless and generous in their support of other families facing the same or similar situation to the one they found themselves in.
“There is now a lot of documented evidence indicating that a supportive environment can help impact positively on how families respond to difficult news and cope with bereavement. Many trusts still do not have specific rooms for families to use as quiet rooms to draw strength from one another, to talk to specialist clinicians and receive bereavement support following a diagnosis but in Ted’s Bubble Room, our trust, Lancashire Teaching Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust, most certainly does.”
Matron for neonatal services Jo Smith added: “Ted’s Bubble Room upgrade has made an environment used by families a much more comfortable and private space and many families will benefit from it during their baby’s stay on NICU. Thank you for the donations to Baby Beat that have made it possible.”
Baby Beat
Baby Beat supports the Royal Preston Hospital’s Sharoe Green Maternity Unit, which as well providing maternity care for mothers-to-be from Central Lancashire is also home to Lancashire and South Cumbria’s specialist NICU. It looks after between 400-450 premature and poorly babies from across the two counties and their families annually.
Find out more here: www.babybeat.org.uk