First baby is born at the Wallingford Birthing Centre
12/02/2014
This article is more than ten years old.
On Wednesday 5 February, at 8.05pm and weighing 8lb 4oz, Jack Arthur Lee became the first baby to be born at the Wallingford Birthing Centre since its official re-opening following a refurbishment.
Mum, Hannah Clinkard, whose due date was 6 February, was the first woman to give birth in the centre since the refurbishment and was extremely happy with the entire experience, she said: "As this was my first baby I really didn't know how I would feel or what I would expect. The whole birthing experience was just amazing.
"From the one-to-one care and support from my midwife, Coreen and student midwife Megan, who experienced her first delivery, everything was just fantastic."
Wallingford Birthing Centre re-opened at the end of January following an extensive refurbishment which included; two new birthing pools, an additional birthing room, ensuite facilities in two of the birthing rooms, an ensuite facility in the postnatal ward and a refurbished family room.
The birthing centre, which is run by Oxford University Hospitals NHS Trust, is one of more than 100 across the country to benefit from a grant from the Department of Health's Improving Birthing Environments Capital Fund 2012.
Wallingford was awarded £350,000, which has been used to create a physical birth environment that facilitates a woman's sense of dignity and control, maximising the opportunity for staff and families to support the woman through the birth and transition into family life.
Hannah and partner Simon Lee, both from Benson, Oxfordshire are pictured with Student Midwife Megan Morgan (second right) and OUH midwife Coreen Tombs (far right).