A WOMAN who lost her baby when she was 23 weeks pregnant says she is glad that more bereaved parents can now apply for a baby loss certificate.

But Kay Collier, 44, is still urging decision-makers to do more. She says that parents who suffer miscarriage should be able to get their child legally recognised and that such lives should be traceable no matter what stage they were lost at.

Because of a new rule change, more bereaved parents will now be able to apply for a certificate to recognise the loss of their baby.

The government has removed a cut-off date that had meant only those who had had a pregnancy loss or miscarriage since September 2018 were eligible. Now certificates are available to anyone who lost their baby before 24 weeks of pregnancy or 28 if the loss was before October 1992.

The baby loss certificates are provided under a scheme which was launched earlier this year. Already, more than 50,000 of the certificates, which are free to receive, have been issued – including to Kay.

Kay, from St Austell, said: “I'm glad that baby loss is becoming more acknowledged and that people are talking about it more. The certificates help make this topic less taboo – and prove that many parents have suppressed feelings.

“But I’m still unsatisfied, it’s just a certificate that lies in your household and is nothing legal.

“There is no traceability – and the baby wouldn’t be on your family tree or any legal records.

“You go through all the trials of pregnancy, and you see and imagine yourself as a mother.

“You imagine that life ahead – and then it’s just taken away and you’re left feeling like you shouldn’t be able to grieve.”

Kay and husband Darren, 54, were thrilled when they discovered she were pregnant with their first child after IVF in 2018.

But after Kay contracted an infection, her waters broke at 21 weeks and Joseph James Collier had to fight for his life. He was stillborn two weeks later.

Kay and Darren were able to sit with their son in hospital to spend time with him and say their goodbyes.

Nearly six years later, Kay, an administrator with glass merchant Cornwall Glass, remains heartbroken about her loss.

She said: “It was the most painful thing that my husband and I have experienced mentally and emotionally. It’s still upsetting and there will always be something that will never make you forget.”

Kay and Darren have launched a charity, Rest With Joseph And Friends. They are working to create a burial garden in St Austell for babies born through late-miscarriage, to give them a resting place and provide comfort for other grieving families.