Child bereavement suite opens at hospital

A new area for families who have lost children is being opened at a hospital in Nottingham.

The bereavement suite at Queen's Medical Centre is designed to provide an alternative setting away from busy hospital wards, offering "privacy, dignity and emotional comfort".

Adapted from former office space in the children's hospital, it has been refurbished using more than £11,000 from the Nottingham Hospitals Charity, supported by fundraising from families.

Child bereavement nurse specialist Lucy Lawton said: "It is not fair for people to be in a corridor or coffee shop and process what they are going through."

It is the only dedicated bereavement suite serving the children's hospital, staff said, as previous support spaces were ward or department-based, often requiring families to remain within clinical environments.

The suite also features a memory tree where tributes to children can be attached.

Lawton said: "I don't think it gets bigger than when a child dies.

"So I think it is important we acknowledge that and care for the families it is happening to, and they have a space which is private and confidential."

Phoebe Johnson was 10 days short of her 18th birthday when she was killed in a car crash in October 2021.

Her family raised money for the room and her mother, Nicky Johnson, has campaigned for tighter controls on young drivers.

While praising the work of the bereavement team, she said the shock of losing Phoebe was compounded by their immediate surroundings.

"Our world had been blown to smithereens, but it felt like everyone else was rushing around laughing and smiling.

"[A room like this] would have made a massive difference.

"It would have been somewhere to be quiet, to cry if we needed to, to just stare at the wall.

"We couldn't believe we were just stuck in a corridor for a length of time and then moved to a room which had equipment in it.

"We couldn't even get a glass of water.

"So I'm sure [the suite is] going to be of benefit to many people."

Beth Anderson's son Omari Thomas was 17 when he suffered fatal injuries in a motorbike accident in Chilwell in October 2024.

"We were moved from corridor to corridor and this will give families a space to breathe, to grieve and have some dignity.

"A year after Omari passed, we had a charity football match and hundreds and hundreds attended and we donated what we made to the child bereavement team.

"We knew that they were looking at opening a room and we thought that was really important - a great cause to put money towards, to support the great work they do," she said.

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