Babies 'Special Memories' remembrance service

06 February 2024

Parents and families who have suffered the loss of a baby are being invited to attend a special service.

The annual event, organised by Bereavement Services at York and Scarborough Teaching Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust, is held to support families experiencing pregnancy loss. The service aims to acknowledge and remember pregnancies that were lost and the babies who have died through miscarriage, stillbirth, and neonatal death.

It is held every year on Mother’s Day for all the families that have lost a baby. This year’s service is on Sunday 10 March at 10.30 am at York Hospital, The Chapel.

It will be hosted by the Chaplaincy service, bereavement service including bereavement midwives, and the local Stillbirth and neonatal death Charity (SANDs).

Bereavement Midwife, Bev Shelley, said: “This special service is for anyone who has experienced the loss of a baby at any stage of pregnancy or following birth. At whatever stage of grief people find themselves in, it’s a way of marking a moment and renewing precious memories.

“The invitation is open to all family members, not just parents, but siblings and grandparents - anyone who has suffered this painful experience and wants to remember their little ones.”

Hospital employees are also invited to join in the gathering, to help remember patients and families that they cared for during the past year.

The Hospital Chaplaincy will conduct the short service which takes around 45 minutes.  After the service, there will be an opportunity to have refreshments afterward in the Bereavement Services department.