A YOUNG couple are hoping to raise £500 for a stillbirth and neonatal death charity in memory of their baby girl who passed away last April.

Jenna Salmon and Andrew Mundell from Saltcoats tragically lost their little girl Daisy at 35 weeks.

In memory of Daisy, Andrew and his friend Alan Murdoch from Stevenston are cycling 55 miles round Arran for Ayrshire SANDS.

The organisation, part of the wider Stillbirth and Neonatal Deaths (SANDS) charity, is a voluntary support group run by bereaved parents and grandparents for anyone affected by the loss of a baby.

Jenna told the Herald that it’s important that people talk openly about stillbirth and neonatal death as it’s much more common than people realise, particularly in Ayrshire.

She said: “I want people to be more aware. People don’t want to talk about it because they think it’s awkward.

“I would like to get the message out – you know your own body so go with your instincts if you know something’s not right. Speak to your doctor.

“You think it’s not going to happen to you. You don’t realise how common it is. Since it happened to us, a lot of people have told us it’s happened to them too.

“Ayrshire’s got one of the highest stillbirth rates in Scotland. When it happened to us, we were told that it was one in four.

“They don’t know how but hopefully if the money can go to research, then they can find out why that is.

“It’s a very private subject and serious but people don’t talk about it. I want to raise awareness and understanding about how much the charity does.”

Andrew and Alan set off on their sponsored cycle on Saturday, April 8.

You can sponsor them via their Just Giving page at https://www.justgiving.com/fundraising/j-salmon2.