THE heartbroken mum of a stillborn baby has raised £1,600 to buy a special cot to help other grieving parents.

Kiera Pooler from Brierley Hill was 27 weeks pregnant when she found out her son, Rogan-Lee, had died.

The 21-year-old and her partner Jake Hildred, aged 22, were able to spend time with their son after he was born at Russells Hall Hospital, thanks to a cuddle cot - a portable cooling device for babies who are stillborn or die shortly after birth.

Kiera, who has since had a healthy baby girl called Leila-Mai, now aged 15 months, said: “Jake and I were able to have that extra time with Rogan-Lee after he was born, and it meant so much to us. My family also got to see him.

“However, at the time, there was only one device there and there were five other parents who had babies that were born sleeping that day.

“It meant that they didn’t have that special time with their baby like we did."

Since the tragedy, which happened more than two years ago, Kiera has carried out various activities to raise money for another cuddle cot and sold badges and tops with 'Rogan-Lee’s Charity' printed on them.

She added: “Once I had raised enough money I found out that Russells Hall didn’t need a cuddle cot, so Sands - the stillbirth and neonatal death charity - put a call out to find out which hospitals were in need of the cot."

Birmingham City Hospital came forward and Kiera was "delighted" to visit recently and drop off the cuddle cot, adding: "I know that it will really help other grieving parents out there, who have gone through a similar experience as myself and Jake.”

Fran Wootton, the hospital's advanced neonatal nurse practitioner, said: “We are extremely grateful for the kind and generous donation of this cuddle cot in memory of Rogan-Lee. We have complete admiration for the effort and dedication to raise the funds needed for the purchase of this cuddle cot.

“We cannot thank Rogan-Lee's parents enough for what they are doing for our unit and for other parents who will benefit massively from another cuddle cot, giving other parents the chance to have precious time with their baby should they sadly go through the same or a similar experience."

She continued: “Having this second cuddle cot will provide our parents with the possibility of borrowing a cuddle cot to take their baby home, should they wish to. This is something we would not have been able to offer parents prior to this donation as we need to ensure we always have one available to use.”