We are raising money to support Broomfield hospital Cleft department.

In 2015 we were excited to be completing our family with a new addition due in the October.

We went for our 20 week scan and were given the news that our baby was to be born with a Cleft lip and possible Cleft palate too.

Our world was turned upside down, this was not what we were expecting. We were scared, frightened, anxious but also excited to meet our new addition.

Oliver arrived on the 12th October and was quickly found to have a Cleft lip and Palate. This meant that Oliver would not be able to be breastfed.

The Cleft department at Broomfield were amazing and helped us learn to tube feed Oliver and eventually he was able to take a specialized bottle which helps you to squeeze assist his feeding as with no palate Oliver was unable to suck.

As a mum I was very upset to not be able to breastfeed him and the Cleft department were amazing in supporting me and lent us a professional breast pump so I could express, as when my daughter was born I was unable to express using shop bought breast pumps.

Oliver is now 2 and doing amazingly well having had 2 operations already. He has attended speech therapy and has had numerous hearing tests as cleft babies can also have their hearing affected.

Babies born with a Cleft lip and palate will have to go through a big operation when they are around just 3 months old to reconstruct their lip, and another around 12 months old to join together the palate. When babies are born with a Cleft they can sometimes have a gum notch which can also affect their teeth. When they are 8-9 years old they will have a bone graft, and bone from their hip will be used to fill this gap.

Around 1 in 700 babies are born every year with a Cleft, meaning that the support that a Cleft department provides is absolutely vital.

Everybody knows that research has shown that breastfeeding is best for your baby and we believe that every mum should be given the opportunity if they wish to be able to provide breast milk. Without new breast pumps Broomfield hospital will soon not be able to provide these as their current pumps are becoming too old to be repaired.

Before Oliver was born we attended an antenatal appointment where we were given a pack containing important leaflets and a specialized bottle ready for if we needed it when Oliver was born. Without funding these packs cannot be provided to expectant parents, and the thought of not having a bottle to feed your baby with is a worry new parents could do without.

Our aim is to help Broomfield hospital Cleft department continue to provide the impeccable service that we have, and are continuing to receive from them. Oliver will be under the Cleft team until he is 21 years old.

Although Broomfield hospital is in Chelmsford they cover all of Essex from antenatal diagnosis until that child is 21.

This is written by Oliver's mummy and daddy and we understand that all Cleft babies are different and have different stories to tell, and this is Oliver's cleft journey from our eyes.