Our families

Acey had what most mums would call a perfect pregnancy until around 32 weeks when she started displaying symptoms that would mark the start of a very difficult journey for her family.

Following a traumatic birth after suffering placental abruption, Marie had to endure every mother’s worst fear as her baby daughter Rosie was whisked away in urgent need of care.

Up until the age of three, Isabel was just like any other little girl – a bright, lively child affectionately described as a whirlwind by her parents, Sophie and James. Little did they know the devastating diagnosis that would soon change everything for her and her family.

When Lorea was a baby she hardly ate, was always crying and slept all the time. Already having a healthy two-year-old girl, Amaia, parents Maite and Adrian just felt something wasn’t right.

Lilly-Anne was born five weeks early in June 2013 and from the very start mum Katie picked up on signs that things might not be right with her newborn.

16-year-old Josh was fit, sporty and unassuming. He’d had no significant health concerns, until one day the family’s world came crashing down. Mum Caroline shares their story.

“I am a Shooting Star Children’s Hospices mum. A few years ago, that would have meant very little to me. Today, it means I belong to a group of parents with a life-limiting condition and we will probably have to say goodbye to our children way too early.”

The Nimmo family have benefited from our care service since 2005, but following two tragedies in the space of three years, Shooting Star Children’s Hospices has been there for them more than ever before.