Your donation will help families like Leah's this Christmas

Leah and her parents celebrating Christmas

"It was 3pm on Christmas Eve, 2021, when we got the most devastating news a parent can hear."

Claire was in hospital with her daughter, Leah. Her partner Dean was at home looking after their eldest child. He had to hear the worst news of his life via Zoom, through a laptop screen, and Claire had to find out alone, without her husband's hand to hold. She remembers "All we could do was watch each other crumble through the screen as we were told that our precious little girl wouldn’t make it to her second birthday"

Yes, I'll help children like Leah this Christmas

Your support will make such a difference to families like Leah's, who are facing heartbreak this Christmas.

Leah and her mum in hospital

Where your donation goes

£35

could pay for a counsellor or psychotherapist, offering vital emotional support for a family when they need it the very most

£52

could give a child an hour of specialist nursing care at the end of their life, so they're comfortable and their family is supported

£100

could help towards our care services on Christmas Day, so children like Leah can have a magical Christmas with their families

Leah’s story

Images and words kindly shared by Claire and Dean, Leah’s parents 

Leah was our little ray of sunshine. We called her Little Miss Giggles because she had such a contagious laugh and bubbly personality. In her short time with us, she brought so much joy to our lives, but at eight months old, Leah started missing milestones, like crawling, and stopped putting on weight. Then to our distress, she had a respiratory arrest at the doctors as she was being weighed. Leah had a rare terminal disease, Gauchers type 2, we found out on Christmas Eve.

Nothing prepares you for news like that. What do you do when you’re told you’ll lose your beautiful baby?

It was harder to process the devastating news because Leah’s older sister, who was only four, was excited for Christmas. It felt surreal, doing something so jolly, despite the nightmare we were in. I still cry when I remember her lying in a hospital bed, for her first and only Christmas.

Chestnut gave us so many memories with our precious little girl

When doctors first suggested a hospice, we imagined a clinical hospital, but we were so wrong. Chestnut Tree House is so uplifting and caring – the team brings joy when you can’t imagine any joy is possible.

The nurses hung fairy lights all around Leah’s room, which were her favourite, and took her on walks around the grounds. The chef even cooked all our favourite meals, which was essential as we hadn’t been looking after ourselves since Leah’s diagnosis.

The pace of life at Chestnut was slower too, so we could enjoy being together as a family for those last precious weeks. We poured our love over Leah, getting in all the hugs we could, soaking up her laughter. Leah wasn’t Leah without her glasses – everyone at Chestnut knew it! The glasses helped with her deteriorating vision from Gauchers but they also made her look so cute! The nurses really listened to us about how important they were and always made sure she had them on.

Leah thrived so much under Chestnut’s care that we were even able to take her on the long road trip to her grandmother’s house in Coventry. The whole family there had cuddles with Leah, she loved all the affection they showered on her.

And then it was time.

In her grandmother’s house, surrounded by her adoring family, our beautiful baby daughter died in our arms.

It was the hardest moment of our lives, but it was also loving and beautiful, thanks to Chestnut’s support to get her well enough to make the journey back to her wider family. After she died, we wanted Leah back in her local community, so we took her to Chestnut’s Stars bereavement suite. Even then, the nurses made sure she had her glasses, which really touched us.

Saying goodbye

Leah’s sister got to say goodbye, which helped her understand what was happening. Coping with our own emotions was difficult enough, it was heartbreaking seeing our eldest daughter completely devastated, and not being able to smooth away her pain. Chestnut was a lifeline for her, and for all of us. She kept asking if she could go back, so they set up regular playdates for her.

Some of the hospice staff also helped us process our loss with counselling sessions, and by holding a memorial ceremony, where we laid a pebble in honour of our giggling little girl. At Chestnut, nothing is too much to ask, or too small to matter. They’re here for our whole family whenever we need them and we cannot thank them enough.

Why your donation is important

“Children’s end of life care is lacking in our area. Any gaps in funding will severely impact our ability to support children like Leah.” - Sharon Wheeler, Head of Clinical Services at Chestnut Tree House
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Costs are rising

As hospice care costs across the UK continue to rise, we are facing major funding challenges at Chestnut Tree House.

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Over £5 million

Each year we need £5million to care for local families and very little of this comes from the government.

Donate today
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You make the difference

Most of our care relies on kind supporters like you. Please make a donation today if you can.