Each year on November 17th we mark World Prematurity Day to raise awareness of babies that are born too early and the impact this can have on families.

1 in 13 babies are born prematurely. With the right care most babies will go on to meet their development milestones and live healthy lives. For others it will be a bumpy road. Some will face life-long challenges.

Babies in Buscot Support (BIBS) raise funds to give sick and premature new-borns at the Royal Berkshire Hospitals neonatal unit the best possible start in life. Our small, local charity is run by parents that have had a baby spend time on Buscot Ward. We have been there too. That is why we care so deeply and want to make the experience for all babies admitted to Buscot Ward and their families the best it can be.

The last 18 months have been an incredibly difficult time for everyone, not least the charity sector. BIBS relies solely on the local community and, sadly, weve experienced a significant decline in income by over 40%. Now, more than ever, we need your help to enable us to support the NHS and continue to save tiny lives.

We are encouraging our supporters to wear a purple item for a day in November in return for a small donation. The purple item could be a t-shirt, socks, jumper, dress or silly head-band! You can choose to supplement your fundraising with other events too (e.g. cake sales, sponsored walks) if you wish. Could you office, school, sports club take part? Invite others to join you!!

BIBS work focuses in four main areas of activity, which we call keeping Buscot families "SAFE":

Support providing families with independent emotional support with the work our Professional Family Practitioner while their baby is on Buscot, and beyond.

Awareness - we help inform parents about what to expect from a stay on Buscot and we raise awareness of issues related to prematurity or sickness at birth.

Facilities - we refurbish facilities and accommodation on the ward to provide a more homely environment, for example the Family Room, Quiet Room and Parent Flats.

Equipment - We fund state of the art equipment for the ward including incubators, cardiac monitors, ventilators, phototherapy units and much more. Over the last 12 months, we have been able to fund 18 new cots, 2 new incubators and 10 reclining chairs.

In addition, we help families by providing gifts to improve their experience especially around key dates such as Christmas or Mothers and Fathers Days.