Former NICU dad supports coffee mornings for families of the smallest patients

Nick Todd, Garden Centre Manager at Squire’s Garden Centre in Chertsey, is working with Little Roo Neonatal Fund to host monthly coffee mornings that bring families together in the garden centre café bar to meet and chat about their experiences on, and after NICU.

Nick has a personal connection with the unit, as his son Austin spent around 100 days being cared for by the team in 2019 after being born at 26 weeks, and he wanted to support Little Roo in any way he could.

Shortly after Nick moved to Squire’s in Chertsey, the opportunity came to select the garden centre’s charity of the year. The Little Roo charitable fund was chosen as charity of the year by for a second time.

Speaking about how the partnership came about, Nick explains: “In my first few weeks here, I met with Sid Hurry, charity manager for Little Roo, to discuss what we could do to support them, not only to raise funds, but to also raise awareness of the charity and the support it needs. It was then that Sid mentioned about running an offsite coffee morning.

“I can offer a safe space for families to come and discuss their experiences with those who have been through something similar. I also have that experience, so I could be a helping hand and offer my support to those parents too.

“The unit can be a loud and scary place and actually coming away from that for a short period of time can be really beneficial.”

The coffee mornings are held from 11am to 12pm on the last Thursday of each month in the Chertsey branch café bar. They are open to all families past and present, whose baby or babies have been or are currently being cared on the NICU.

Sid Hurry adds: “We are extremely grateful for the support that Nick and his team at Squire’s continue to provide by raising awareness of Little Roo, and for offering a space for our NICU community to come together to support one another.

“The NICU experience doesn’t end when families leave the unit, it can feel very isolating as loved ones may not understand their experience. The coffee morning provides an excellent opportunity for both current and past NICU families to come together and support one another in a friendly and informal environment.”

Little Roo Neonatal Fund is part of the Ashford and St Peter’s Hospitals Charity. find out more by visiting www.ashfordstpeters.nhs.uk/littleroo