Examiner Comminty Awards: Courage Award

Jun 13 2009 by Sam Casey, Huddersfield Daily Examiner

ALANNA Delahaye and Glynn Bates were devastated when they lost their baby, Maisie, just two days after she was born.

But they were also angry, too, as they believe her death last September could have been avoided.

Alanna was due to give birth at Huddersfield Royal Infirmary’s new birth centre on September 13.

But after last-minute complications with her pregnancy she was transferred to Calderdale Royal Hospital in Halifax to give birth on September 8.

Maisie’s umbilical cord had become wrapped around her, cutting off the oxygen supply to her brain.

She was left severely brain damaged and Alanna and Glynn, from Golcar, took the heartbreaking decision to turn off her life support machine on September 11.

They believe Maisie may have survived if consultant-led services had still been available in Huddersfield and Alanna had been able to give birth at HRI instead of travelling the extra miles to Calderdale.

Now the couple are campaigning for the return of full maternity services.

They have launched the Move Our Maternity Services (MOMS) campaign, set up a Facebook group with more than 6,000 members and started a petition on the 10 Downing Street website which has more than 2,000 signatures.