A YOUNG mum who went through labour, only to discover her child had died in the womb, has launched a £9,000 appeal in a bid to prevent other women going through the same ordeal.

Following the tragedy more than 12 months ago, Kelly Wyllie, 25, and her mum June, of Regent Street, Nelson, are hoping to raise enough money to pay for a monitor which detects the heartbeat of an unborn child separately from that of its mother.

The equipment will be donated to Burnley General Hospital.

The pair are currently organising various fundraising events in Burnley and Pendle to help transform the dream into reality and hope a concert in Nelson at the end of this month will be a real boost to the appeal.

Kelly carried her daughter full term but the child, named Shannon, was stillborn.

A scan the week before she gave birth picked up a heartbeat but it seems that could have been Kelly's own pulse.

The heartbeat monitor which Kelly and her mum want to buy for the hospital can more easily separate the mother's heartbeat from the baby's.

June said: "With it coming up to a year since Shannon died we thought we could raise money in memory of her.

"A couple of people have already raised some money and we are hoping to have a pub crawl in Burnley next Friday, once we have permission from the police and council.

"We now have the tickets for the concert in Nelson which will take place on May 31.

"We will carry on the appeal for money donations or donations of raffle prizes until the end of May and make sure that when we hand over the money we know it's going towards this machine, not the baby unit in general."

Kelly said: "I had three scans within a week and the machinery didn't detect anything wrong. Hopefully this new equipment will stop other people going through the same thing.

"At the moment, the monitor goes around your stomach. The new one is attached to the mother's finger so it can tell the difference between the heartbeats.

"Other people have been raising money for us and I'd like to thank the landlady at The Bull pub who raised some cash at a fun day. It was nice that she took the time to do that. "

The forthcoming concert, which will feature solo vocalists, a raffle and fun and games, will begin at 8pm on Friday, May 31, at the Old Brass Band Club, in Barkerhouse Road, Nelson.

Anyone wanting to buy tickets or offer a donation should contact June on 01282 721294.