Twin loss charity has helped 250 families in a year

Ms Darke regularly visits the grave of her twin sons

A charity set up for parents who have lost twin or triplet babies has helped 250 families in its first year.

Footprints Baby Loss was co-founded by Sharon Darke from Middleton Cheney, Northamptonshire, whose identical twin boys Charlie and Joshua died within days of their birth in 1999.

She said she was "proud of the special community that we have at Footprints".

The charity now has 35 volunteers, including mothers, fathers and a grandmother.

Ms Darke said she was "super-excited to be having twins" in 1999.

"I had an OK pregnancy until I went into labour at 26 weeks," she said.

"Charlie was born first and he weighed 1lb 12oz (0.8 kg) and didn't make any sounds. Joshua was born 13 minutes later and he weighed 1lb 10oz (0.74 kg)."

Charlie died in his mother's arms seven days later. Joshua looked as though he might have pulled through, but he passed away after a further six days.

Recalling how much support she had needed after losing her babies, Ms Darke became a befriender and began supporting another bereaved mother, Suzie Scofield, from Wargrave, near Reading.

Ms Scofield's son Rory died in the womb at 21 weeks and his brother Daniel lived for just a day after he was born.

The charity was founded a year ago by bereaved mothers Sharon Darke (left) and Suzie Scofield

The two women decided parents who had lost twins and triplets needed a special kind of peer support, and they set up Footprints Baby Loss in January 2024.

It has supported 250 families in its first year through befriending, support groups and social media communities.

Claire, the mother of twin girls Winnie and Florence, said: "Grieving the death of one twin whilst trying to care for the other is an incredibly tough path to be on.

"The peer-to-peer support provided by Footprints really helped my husband and me to navigate it as best we could. We are extremely grateful to them and our befrienders for being there for us in such difficult times."

Ms Darke added: "I have found the online community really helpful since Charlie and Joshua died 24 years ago.

"It has been important to have a safe space to share thoughts and feelings and to be able to talk about them."

Sharon Darke is looking forward to a fundraising climb of Ben Nevis in May

The charity relies on fundraising, and a climb of Ben Nevis is planned for May to raise more money.

"I am really looking forward to the year ahead, and in particular climbing Ben Nevis with our Footprints team," said Ms Darke.

"It is always so special to be with families and to have the privilege of talking to them about their babies."