Thanks for taking the time to visit my JustGiving page.

We tragically lost our baby daughter, Mia, who was stillborn on 3rd September 2011. Mia was 8 days overdue following a normal low-risk healthy pregnancy. We’d heard Mia’s little heartbeat just a few hours before labour started and suspected nothing as we travelled to hospital, expecting to bring home our first child.

We had a meeting at the hospital during November to discuss the results of Mia’s post-mortem. The results showed that Mia’s placenta had a rare defect called 92XXXX. It had double the amount of chromosomes that it should have which caused it to degrade 5 or 6 weeks before Mia was born. Because the placenta couldn’t function properly at that stage, Mia stopped growing at the rate normally expected, meaning that she was not big enough or strong enough to cope with labour.

The consultant told us that had the lack of growth towards the end of the pregnancy been picked up as it could have, we would have been sent for a scan with the result being that Mia would have been delivered by planned cesarean section a week or two before due date. We were told that had this have happened, Mia would have been alive today. Not an easy thing to hear.

You can hear watch me talk more about our experience, along with the long-term impact it had on us in this video: Baby loss – a colleague story - YouTube

However, our tragic story is only one of thousands in the UK every year.

That's why I'm proud to be joining Team Tommy's in the London Marathon 2022 to support Tommy's and continue their vital work saving babies' lives. Tommy's fund research into miscarriage, stillbirth and premature birth, and provide pregnancy health information to parents. They believe it is unacceptable that one in four women lose a baby during pregnancy and birth. They want every parent to have the best possible pregnancy outcomes and to take home happy, healthy babies. Please support me to take on the 26.2 miles of the London  Marathon. To give you an idea of the impact of your donation: £10 could buy a thermometer to help doctors at the Tommys miscarriage research centre predict ovulation. £100 could pay for a blood pressure monitor at the Tommys miscarriage research centre. £350 could fund a Tommy's midwife for a day on our pregnancy line giving specialist pregnancy advice and support. Thank you so much for your support!

Donating through JustGiving is simple, fast and totally secure. Your details are safe with JustGiving - they'll never sell them on or send unwanted emails. Once you donate, they'll send your money directly to the charity. So it's the most efficient way to donate - saving time and cutting costs for the charity.