Work is set to start on a bereavement suite for parents who suffer a stillbirth at Medway Maritime Hospital.

Abigail’s Footsteps, a charity set up by Jo and David Ward after their daughter was stillborn in April 2009, will be refurbishing three rooms at the hospital in Gillingham.

The suite will give somewhere for parents to spend precious moments with their babies.

Funding has come from donations across Medway. Singer and presenter Cheryl Baker, who is the charity’s vice president, raised more than £30,000 from her appearances on stage and TV last year, including Celebrity Mr and Mrs and The National Lottery – Who Dares Wins quiz show.

She said: “I am passionate about the work that Abigail’s Footsteps does .

“One of my twin daughters was born with respiratory distress syndrome which meant that her lungs weren’t developed properly.

“I am so grateful to the medical team who saved her life but I am acutely aware that I could have lost her. I can’t imagine any greater grief than losing a child.”

The rooms are away from the maternity wards and will be soundproof so parents can grieve on their own, without the sound of newborns and happy families near by, something the Wards found heartbreaking when they lost their daughter Abigail.

Mr Ward said: “We believe that every maternity unit should have a purpose-built bereavement suite where parents can spend precious time with their stillborn baby away from the cries of newborns.

“It is particularly poignant that our first suite should be at the Medway Maritime Hospital as it was here that my wife Jo gave birth to Abigail Rosie-Ann who was the inspiration for the charity.”

It is hoped the bereavement suite, which is being created with the help of construction firm Cardy’s, will be in use by the end of the year.

Abigail’s Footsteps, the Medway Messenger’s charity of the year in 2015, has raised more than £100,000 to date.

The money has funded cold cots which allow parents to spend more time with their babies and bereavement training for midwives across the UK.

To find out more, visit www.abigailsfootsteps.co.uk