Baby set for US heart operation after £1.5m raised

Jasmin thanked all her supporters in a message on social media

An appeal to raise £1.5m to pay for a baby's heart operation has reached its target and a date has been set for the procedure.

Ollie, from Gobowen, Shropshire, who was born with a hole in his heart and defects in his arteries, is set to fly to California in the new year for an operation on 23 January, his mum Jasmin has announced.

She said when she was told an operation could not be carried out in the UK, she began a fundraising mission to have it done in the US.

Early efforts saw her sell her home before more than 84,000 people contributed to an appeal. In a social media post, she told them: "Nine weeks ago this felt impossible. Now it is happening, because of you guys."

Jasmin said that due to specifics in Ollie's case, UK hospitals took the view that operating was not possible and as a result, could only offer palliative care amid a bleak prognosis.

Stanford Children's Hospital, however, told her it thought the procedure could be done on the 14-month-old.

With the money now raised, Jasmin said she would travel there two weeks in advance of the procedure date for cardiac clinics, although she admitted to being a "bit upset" as she had been hoping for something sooner.

Jasmin had originally thought the treatment would cost £3m. But the second part of Ollie's treatment will now be carried out in the UK, halving the total cost.

The mum, who after selling her home in Gobowen moved in with her own mother in Wrexham, said the appeal really took off when it started being shared on TikTok and Instagram, where it has received millions of views.

Among those to take note was the Scottish author Leigh Rivers, who donated more than £100,000 to the appeal, and the actor Ryan Reynolds, part owner of Wrexham FC, who donated £10,000.