About the Tree of Life
What is the Tree of Life project?
The Tree of Life project is a fundraising initiative launched by Friends of Serenity in 2023 to raise £50,000 for a 4-metre-high blossom tree sculpture. This permanent sculpture will be positioned in the outdoor courtyard space on the ground floor of Lancashire Women and Newborn Centre (LWNC) at Burnley General Hospital. The reason for doing this is to commemorate babies who have died, creating a peaceful space for families to remember and reflect.
We understand that for lots of families, LWNC is the place you may have given birth to your babies and is the only place you may have met, held and said goodbye to them too, so the significance of the Tree of Life standing in this space is incredibly important.
Who is behind the Tree of Life project?
Friends of Serenity, a charity that supports families through baby loss across East Lancashire, is organising the Tree of Life Project, working closely with East Lancashire Hospital Trust (ELHT) to bring this project to fruition.
Friends of Serenity has fundraised for ELHT since 2013, providing service enhancements including The Butterfly Suite, a specialist bereavement suite within Central Birth Suite at LWNC, memory boxes, rainbow boxes, Mama Academy wallets during pregnancy, heartbeat monitors and much more.
What will the sculpture look like?
The Tree of Life will be a beautiful blossom tree sculpture made from stainless steel, to withstand the elements of East Lancashire, and to prevent rusting over time.
The design represents the blossom trees found in our Lancashire landscape around the hospital, with the significance of a blossom tree reflecting life in a beautiful way.
The blossom flowers on the tree will be blue, lilac and silver.
Each blossom flower has the capacity to contain an additional leaf on the tree bearing the names of babies who have died.
In addition to the main tree in the courtyard space, flowers with baby names will be placed on the walls surrounding the garden where the tree stands.
The sculpture has been designed by local artist, Ruth Moilliet, who is a renowned sculptor, specialising in bespoke metal designed, inspired by the plant kingdom.
Contributions and Personalisation
Please note that East Lancashire Hospital Trust is not promoting or hosting information in the Hospital setting to give assurances of patient care for the registered professionals.
All information will be hosted on the charity supporting this offer and can only be obtained via their page.
This further information is the agreed procedure of the supporting charity Friends of Serenity.
I would like to have my baby’s name included on a leaf on the Tree of Life that has been donated to East Lancashire Hospitals, how can I do this?
There are a few ways to do this:
- If you have already contributed to the Tree of Life project with a donation of £50 or over, one of the Friends of Serenity team will be in touch to ask if you wish to have a personalised leaf included on the Tree of Life.
- If you haven’t donated to the Tree of Life project but would like to contribute to a personalised leaf, you can do so here.
- If you would like to donate for someone else to have the opportunity, you can ‘pay it forward’ and cover the cost for another family to have a personalised leaf on the Tree of Life, you can gift here
Is there a cost to include my baby’s name on the Tree of Life. ?
A recommended minimum donation of £50 will go towards the cost of personalised leaf with your baby’s name attached to one of the blossom flowers on the tree.
This includes the cost of the leaf, engraving, and a framed photo of the flower and leaf, which will be sent to you by post, also included within the cost. Please make sure to include your address details at the time of donating online, if you wish to have a photo of your personalised blossom and leaf sent to you via post.
I would love to have my baby’s name included, but I can’t cover the cost.
We understand. Please get in touch with us as we have a number of donors who have chosen to ‘pay it forward’ and have paid for other families to have a leaf.
How do I add the information needed for my personalised leaf?
You’ll find the different options for personalisation on our shop, here.
Then, add your chosen option to your basket, in a similar way to how you would if you were shopping online.
Follow the steps to complete the form, including your baby’s name as you would like it to appear on the leaf.
Please also include contact details for the purpose of sending a framed photograph of your flower and leaf.
What happens if there is an error in the engraving of the leaf?
Names submitted to the engraver will be processed exactly as written on the form.
Should an error occur after engraving, a £5 donation is kindly requested from the family to partially cover the cost of re-engraving.
However, if the mistake is made by Friends of Serenity/the engraver, the re-engraving cost will be covered by us.
How can I pay for my personalised blossom leaf?
Payments for contributions via our website will be processed through PayPal, offering a secure transaction method for families participating in the Tree of Life Project.
We also have an option to make a bank transfer – please get in touch with us if you wish to donate this way.
When is the deadline for submitting names for the Tree of Life Project?
The Tree of Life will be launched during the annual Wave of Light Ceremony at Lancashire Women and Newborn Centre on 15th October.
After this initial launch, the Tree of Life will remain in position, and will be open for families to visit throughout the year.
To have your leaf personalised in time for the launch, families are encouraged to submit names for the first wave of leaves by 1 October 2024, to allow enough time for your leaf to be etched and attached to the Tree of Life.
If you pay for and submit your details after 1st October 2024, your flower and leaf will be included within the next wave of names set to be added to the Tree of Life in January 2025.
We then intend to add any further names once a season in January, April, July, and October, where the hospital Chaplin will host a small ceremony at the Tree of Life each time baby’s names are added. We will notify you of the date of each ceremony, which you will be very welcome to attend.
Project Details
When will the Tree of Life be in position?
The Tree of Life will be unveiled during the Wave of Light ceremony (15th October) to coincide with Baby Loss Awareness Week.
When will I be able to visit the Tree of Life?
Access to the tree and surrounding courtyard area will be via the door located within the foyer of LWNC next to gynaecology clinic. The courtyard within LWNC can be open, as far as is safe, as much as possible.
The area will be open daily between the hours of 10.00 – 18.00hrs.
Opening hours may be subject to change during the summer and winter months – the courtyard may close earlier in the day during winter for safety reasons due to darker evenings.
During working hours, stated above, the door will be unlocked; Should the door be found to be locked in normal working hours, please let a member of staff know and they will request the door is unlocked to enable access to the area. There will be no access to the courtyard once the door is locked in an evening unless by prior appointment.
No events or large gatherings are to be arranged and no publicised events are permitted without application to the Trust charity ELHT&&Me
What flower options are available for families contributing to the project?
Families will have the choice of a blue, lilac, or silver flower. The silver flower option acknowledges instances where you may not know your baby’s gender, or if you would prefer silver in place of a lilac or blue option.
Please make sure to include your flower colour option at the time of making your donation towards the cost of the flower and leaf.
How will the framed photo of the flower and leaf be arranged and sent out to families?
The framed photos will be arranged by the team of volunteers at Friends of Serenity and sent out promptly via Royal Mail to families who have made contributions to the Tree of Life Project.
I’ve already contributed £50 or more to the Tree of Life – will my baby’s name be automatically added?
If we haven’t already been in touch, please contact us with your preferred flower colour, your baby’s name and your contact details via email.
I have already fundraised or contributed £1,000 or more to this project – what do I need to do now?
If we haven’t already contacted you, please get in touch and we will double check we have the right details to include your baby’s name as part of the Tree of Life and the wall of flowers within the courtyard space.
The flowers on the wall will be 28cm and 180 characters (including spaces)
Date of birth in 00.00.0000 format (day.month.year)
I didn’t name my baby, but I would still like to include them on a leaf – what can I do?
We understand. Perhaps you would like to include ‘Baby and your surname’? Or perhaps a personal name. However, you feel most comfortable with recognising your baby.
Is there a limit to the number of characters I can include on the leaf?
Yes – each leaf can contain a maximum of 40 characters, including spaces, for your baby’s name.
A date of birth can be included in addition to the 40 characters too if you wish, and the format to submit this information is: 00.00.0000 (day.month.year)
Are all of the blossom flowers the same?
All of the blossom flowers on the Tree of Life’s branches are the same size and shape, the only variation will be the three colours – blue, pink and silver.
Can I choose where my blossom flower goes on the Tree of Life?
Each blossom will be carefully connected to the Tree of Life and at the time of installation, the perfect spot will be found for your blossom by the installation team who will position all blossoms equally across the tree.
How big is the tree of Life?
The stainless steel trunk is 4-metres high and the branches reach out 4.2-metres wide.
What happens to the Tree of Life if Lancashire Women and Newborn Centre undergoes renovation and or/moves site in the coming years?
A notice will be posted on the Trusts website should there be any changes or removal of the Tree
From the SOP – Ongoing conservation of the Tree of Life.
It is the responsibility of ELHT to assume full accountability for the Tree of Life in line with the code of fundraising practice. The area within the courtyard will continue to be maintained as part of estates and facilities, as per trust policy and procedure.
Should a change to the Tree of Life be requested, such as to relocate the tree, an application to do so would be required to be submitted and considered by the Trust Charity Board.
How long will my flower and leaf remain on the Tree of Life?
Blossoms will be reviewed at 4 yearly intervals, at this point you will be offered a choice to have your blossom returned to you.
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