Sheffield midwife to run first marathon to raise funds for hospital

Midwife Claire Lord, aged 33, from Meadowhead, is set to take part in her first ever road race, the Yorkshire Half Marathon, to raise money for the Sheffield Hospitals Charity Birthing Pool appeal.

Claire Lord, aged 33, from Meadowhead, is set to take part in her first ever road race, the Yorkshire Half Marathon, to raise money for the Sheffield Hospitals Charity Birthing Pool appeal.

The aim of the appeal is to raise £300,000 to fund the development of new birthing pool suites for the city’s maternity hospital.

Claire, who works on the Jessop Wing, said she is supporting the appeal because has seen the positive impact water can have on supporting natural labours.

She said: “I love my job. I’ve been at midwife at the Jessop Wing for five years and supported hundreds of mums with their labours.

“Water during labour and birth is so calming and gentle; it’s the least invasive form of pain relief.

“The reduction in drug use, during labour means the baby is alert, calm and ready to initiate feeding. In turn, all these benefits lead to a shorter hospital stay so mother and baby can go home earlier.

“When I had my youngest child, Penelope, I met a nice bunch of mums who like running and they got me on board with it. I’ve been training at Graves Park and taking part in the Park Runs.

“It’s my ambition to run a full marathon by the time I’m 40, so this is a good start.

“I hope to raise £1,000 and hope that others will take the charity’s places for the half marathon to help raise funds for this appeal.”

Sheffield Hospitals Charity’s Birthing Pool Appeal, instigated in partnership with Sheffield Teaching Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust, aims to fund the development of three new cutting edge birthing pool rooms at the Jessop Wing.

The refurbished rooms will have fully accessible ergonomic pools, sympathetic décor and dimmable LED lighting to help give parents the most relaxing experience possible.

Sheffield Hospitals Charity has spaces for the region’s flagship 13.1 mile road race which takes place in April and is encouraging more runners to come forward and take part in support of its appeal.

The Yorkshire Half Marathon will take place on Sunday April 8.

To sponsor Claire, visit www.justgiving.com/fundraising/clairelordrunner. To register for a place yourself, email [email protected] or call 01142 267 351.