Still Parents Teesside was formed in 2017 by bereaved mums; including Helen and Nicole, whose sons – Jacob, and Xander – passed away before birth. The charity was set up to support other bereaved parents and anyone else affected by baby loss.

In recent years, other parents have joined the charity as trustees to offer their support and to share their experiences.

Everyone involved devotes their spare time to running the charity, on a voluntary basis; this includes running the monthly support group and other events,  meeting with our local hospital to try and improve bereavement care and donating keepsakes to recently bereaved local families.

Below you can read a little about our babies who sadly left us far too soon, but whose short lives have inspired us to support others.

Xander's story (by Mum Nicole)

Alexander Marshall Kirby (Xander) died very unexpectedly, when I was a week and a half past my due date, in August 2011. This was a shocking end to a very healthy, much-longed-for pregnancy, and the isolation was one of the many things that hit me the hardest. With virtually no one to talk to who understood this very unique loss, I found support online. Although this was wonderful, and quite literally a lifesaver, I longed to meet other bereaved parents in person.

Xander was my first baby, and although my husband Jim and I went on to have two more very healthy boys, the loss of Xander has left a hole in our lives that can never be filled. One of the ways I cope with my loss this many years on, is trying to make a horrible time just a little less horrible for others who lose their baby, and trying to help them feel less alone.

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