A MOTHER whose premature baby was saved by medics at Oxford's John Radcliffe Hospital is set to jump out of an aeroplane to raise money for the clinic which treated him.

Seven years ago, Tommy Stewart was born three weeks premature – and not breathing. Weighing just 5lb 5oz, he would not eat and had jaundice.

But after a tense few weeks in the JR’s neo-natal clinic, he has grown up into a healthy seven-year-old who enjoys lessons at Didcot's Willowcroft Community School.

Now his mother Emma, 25, is going to sky-dive from 13,000 feet with schoolfriend Emma Rees, 25, to raise money for the clinic which saved her “little sunshine”.

The Abingdon College student said: “When Tommy was born, he was very small, very cold and very poorly.

“The first few days he was not putting on any weight at all, but then he found a little bit of fighting power.

“He pulled out his feeding tube, and we left it out to see if he would start feeding.

“If that had not happened, he could have been in there a lot longer.”

She added: “It was a very worrying time for me.

“We were very nervous. In a strange way, being in hospital made me feel less alone.

“I remember crying when we left to go home because I was scared about not having all the doctors and nurses around me.

“Now when I see him all grown up, I want to give something back to them.

“I think of how tiny he was in those first few weeks, and now he's perfect. He's my little sunshine.

“If me sky-diving could help save some baby's life, then I know it will have been worthwhile."

The pair are going to do their sky-dive in north Oxfordshire on Saturday, June 12. They hope to raise almost £1,000 for the hospital.

Tommy said: “It’s good to do this for the babies.”

Miss Stewart is hoping to take up a series of further fundraising challenges for the unit.

lsloan@oxfordmail.co.uk