West London Sands Receives Sizeable Donation From Mortlake Crematorium

The stillbirth and neonatal death charity helps bereaved parents

(l-r)Karen Jones, Paula Sagnier, Candace Moses, Natasha Bradshaw, Ruth Todd, Lynn Lacey  

West London Sands (WLS), part of the national Stillbirth and Neonatal Death Charity, has received a generous donation of £4,444 from Mortlake Crematorium.

WLS helps bereaved parents in the West London area, their families and their friends. They have trained volunteer Befrienders who can offer support over the phone and online, and through monthly group meetings. They also work closely with local hospitals, providing both specialised bereavement training and financial help to improve maternity facilities.

Mortlake Crematorium is very supportive of the work done by West London Sands and has also developed a lovely new children’s garden on site, which is where representatives of both organisations met for the celebratory handing over of the cheque.

“We are extremely grateful to the Mortlake Crematorium for making this generous donation to West London Sands,” said Lynn Lacey, Chair, WLS. “It will help us to continue our work of helping bereaved parents, promoting staff training and supporting our local hospitals.”

“We have been aware for some time of the great work that WLS do in helping families who have suffered the loss of a baby,” said Natasha Bradshaw, Superintendent and Registrar at Mortlake. “We were keen to donate to a local charity and it was particularly fitting to hand over the cheque in our new children’s garden.”

The Waterbugs and Dragonflies Babies and Children’s Memorial Garden at Mortlake was completed in November 2015 and is dedicated to the memory of babies and children. The garden is based on the children’s story “Water bugs and Dragonflies” by Doris Stickley. WLS parent, Candace Moses, said: “The garden is a lovely tranquil space for bereaved parents.” There is a sculptured memorial tree where a leaf can be dedicated to remember a baby or child.

For more information about West London Sands, or to make a donation:
www.westlondonsands.org.uk phone: 07710010026

June 22, 2016