A mum left devastated after the death of her “perfect” six-month-old son has spoken of her agony at losing him to Sudden Infant Death Syndrome (SIDS).
Little Ralph Wakefield died in his sleep after he was placed in his cot at his child-minder’s house last September.
An inquest revealed he had been the victim of SIDS.
Now his heartbroken parents, Jennifer and Stephen Wakefield, are raising money to help prevent future tragedies while boosting awareness about the condition.
Describing the day of his death, Mrs Wakefield, from Hull, East Yorks., said: “He was not ill at the time. He had a cold the week before and that was it.
“He was perfect, really. He was just at a child-minder’s and they put him down for a nap and he just died in his sleep.
“They just thought he had a really long sleep and didn’t realise he had died.”
Mrs Wakefield, 30, who now has a three-month-old son, Edward, is now campaigning to make more people aware of SIDS and of The Lullaby Trust, which helps parents affected by the condition.
She said: “I found it interesting that there was very little information about SIDS available in the Hull and East Riding area from the hospital, doctors or anything like that.
“The Lullaby Trust is the only major charity that do that and we want to get funds to do more research into the things that can help SIDS.
“Hull and East Riding has one of the highest rates of SIDS and not much is known about it.
“Sometimes, because it’s such an upsetting message, people don’t want to talk about it.
“We have to though, because we can’t ignore something like this.”
Mrs Wakefield described the past year as an incredibly challenging one for the family.
She said: “It’s just taking it day-by-day and as it comes. Having a new baby takes up a lot of your time and it helped us focus more and try to move things forward in a positive way.
“I have found now, a year after it happened, that I’m more focused in wanting to do things and raise awareness of it.
The couple will be hosting a fundraising bake sale, Bake It For Ralph, on Saturday, October 5 and a fundraising page has been set up.
To donate, visit www.justgiving.com/
