A new purpose-designed and built Bereavement Suite has been opened at the RUH’s Birthing Centre in Bath to help families cope with the loss of a child.

Midwife Sister and Bereavement Lead at the RUH, Linda Davis, with Nick and Victoria Price
The Forget Me Not suite has been equipped, furnished and decorated with help from volunteer fundraisers, many of who were present at the official opening ceremony.
The suite provides a space away from the busy maternity ward where grieving families who have experienced a stillbirth or neonatal death can have the privacy they need at a particularly difficult time.
Midwifery Sister and Bereavement Lead at the RUH, Linda Davis, said: “To lose a baby is an horrific experience. Having a dedicated and designed space for those families is one of the most important parts of the service we provide here.
“It allows them to have the space and the time they need to grieve. We help them to create a personal memory box to take with them, and we offer expert support to help them to start understanding what has happened so they can take something positive from such a devastating event.”
Guests at the opening included Masonic lodges from Bath that joined forces to raise £5,000 towards the suite, and Ceri Shaw, who set up the Bath branch of the Stillbirth and Neonatal Death Society, and who raised £6,000 for a specialist folding bed.
Also present were Victoria and Nick Price, from Frome in Somerset, who raised £9000 in memory of their baby George, who was tragically stillborn in October 2016.
Their donation will go towards creating a new family room adjoining the suite.
Nick said: “If we can contribute even in a small way to this worthy cause, and help families and couples cope with this awful experience, then it will be a legacy for George.
“A family room would be so useful – it would give relatives somewhere to stay and to support the parents, while allowing them time alone when they need it.”