Her Royal Highness the Countess of Wessex has visited the maternity bereavement suite at Medway Maritime Hospital.

Funded by stillbirth charity Abigail’s Footsteps, the suite was recently praised in Medway NHS Foundation Trust’s latest Care Quality Commission (CQC) report, as "the gold standard in the provision of care for parents and families who experience a stillbirth."

The Countess, who is particularly involved with charities relating to children and families, was due to visit to Abigail's Place in November last year but it was cancelled due to bad weather.

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The charity worked with construction firm Umbra Services and other businesses to complete the scheme, which also received support from Medway NHS Foundation Trust and donations from across Kent.

David Ward, co-founder of Abigail’s Footsteps said: "We are delighted and honoured that HRH the Countess of Wessex has visited Abigail’s Place.

"This is our first purpose-built bereavement suite where parents can spend precious time with their stillborn baby away from the cries of new-borns.

"It is now the template for maternity units across the country and we are already working with other trusts to help them to achieve the same high standards."

Abigail’s Footsteps continues to campaign and fundraise nationally to help other NHS hospitals secure maternity bereavement suites.

The charity is also leading the campaign to secure compulsory bereavement training for all midwives to raise the standard of care across the UK.