'Rotherham Hospital saved my premature baby - now I’m giving back by taking on the Yorkshire Three Peaks'

A dedicated dad whose daughter was born eight weeks prematurely will tackle the Yorkshire Three Peaks challenge to raise money for Rotherham Hospital and Community Charity’s 'Tiny Toes' appeal.

Baby Alice Hitchens was due to be an extra special Christmas delivery for her parents Ashley and Nicola, but they were shocked when she arrived prematurely in early October 2019 after her mum suffered a ruptured membrane in her womb.

The tiny tot weighed just 4lb 9oz and spent the first five weeks of her life in the neonatal unit at Rotherham Hospital. She had pneumonia, needed high-flow oxygen to help her breath and additional support to feed.

Now Alice is a strong and healthy four-year-old, and Ashley has pledged to take part in the ambitious hike to raise funds for other premature and poorly babies, and to say thank you to the NHS.

Ashley, from Rawmarsh, Rotherham, said: "Alice’s arrival eight weeks early was such a massive shock. The staff on the neonatal unit were amazing, but it felt incredibly hard not being able to care for her in the way we hoped and to take her home. Calling our employers to say we’d had a baby so early felt surreal.

"I had to leave Alice and Nicola on the unit when I returned to work, which was heart-wrenching, even though I knew they were in good hands. But life on the unit soon became our new normal and I’d go to see her before and after work.

"We had everything we needed, and although some of the facilities were dated, it was comfortable, the staff were welcoming and we were grateful to be close to Alice. 

"We got the chance to stay in a family room with Alice before we went home together, which felt so positive because we had the independence to be Alice’s parents, to feel useful but safe in the knowledge the nurses were there if we needed them."

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Ashley has been walking and cycling every day to get fitter before he takes on the Yorkshire Three Peaks challenge. The challenge will see Ashely take on Pen-y-ghent, Whernside and Ingleborough in 12 hours, with a fundraising target of £225. 

He added: "I’m too stubborn not to complete it so I’ll be packing my Haribo, flapjacks, plasters and thinking about raising as much as possible for the Tiny Toes appeal."

The charity’s Tiny Toes appeal was launched in August 2023 with the aim to upgrade the facilities on the unit for the first time in 40 years. The Trust has since refurbished the unit to future-proof it for generations to come, and the charity is continuing to fundraise in 2024 to make it an extra special home from home for families when they need it the most.

To find out more about ways you can fundraise for the charity, please visit: https://www.therotherhamft.nhs.uk/charity/events