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Emma, 33 from Bideford in Devon, is taking part in the 2018 London Marathon for Children's Hospice South West (CHSW) in memory of her eldest daughter, Imogen. Here, she says in her own words why taking part in the marathon and fundraising for CHSW is so important.

Lottery winners spent 24 hours making the 'gingerbread house' at Little Bridge House

Children’s Hospice South West’s Little Bridge House received an early Christmas gift on Thursday thanks to a show of generosity from National Lottery winners.

Past winners from across the south of the country spent 24 hours creating a giant ‘gingerbread’ playhouse for children and their families to enjoy.

Brave 11 year old Emily Crisp will be remembered at Exeter Santa Run

Among those taking part in this weekend’s annual Santa Run in Exeter is a group of health workers who have been inspired to take part in memory of an 11-year-old girl who recently died.

Emily Crisp, from Bradninch, had a very rare condition called Bohring-Opitz syndrome that affects the development of many parts of the body.

She was diagnosed when she was three months old and at that time there were only 30 other known cases of it in the world.

The North Devon Gazette’s much-loved light Up a Life appeal was launched to an audience of thousands this year.

It was marked with the switch-on of a special illuminated star in Barnstaple Square during the town’s Christmas lights celebrations on Sunday.

Now in its 21st year, the appeal has become a Christmas tradition to enable people to remember a loved one and help raise money for North Devon Hospice and Children’s Hospice South West.

The charities host a series of services of remembrance across North Devon through December.

The Light up a Life services give families an opportunity to celebrate and remember those who cannot be with us.

Emma and Mark Smale from Bideford lost their daughter Imogen in March aged just four-years-old.

They cannot ever thank the Children’s Hospice South West team at Little Bridge House enough for what they did for Imogen but also the whole family.

"He's looked after by nurses and has all his very complex needs taken care of and is given all his fluids and medicines. You get a chance to recharge your batteries and get that breather you need to carry on. The hospice has been a massive support.

"Samantha and I tend to do a lot of visits to the hospice together and we can do normal mum things like have a glass of wine, chill out and chat – things we don't get much chance to do otherwise. We get to be mums. Without the hospice we wouldn't survive."

A children’s hospice in Wraxall is hoping to entice former nurses back into the field by offering to pay for a return to work course.

Children’s Hospice South West (CHSW) is offering the incentive to tackle the nationwide shortage of nurses in children’s palliative care.

The lack of staff has been affecting the care available to children with life limiting conditions, but CHSW wants to show how rewarding the role can be.

There are more than 50,000 children and young people in the UK who are expected to have short lives and the number is rising. These children have complex and unpredictable health conditions and rely on qualified children’s nurses with the right skills to provide palliative care and symptom management. Yet there is currently a shortage of children’s palliative care nurses and this is already having a negative impact on the care provided to children and families.

To be forced to watch one child slowly die is an unbearable pain no parent should ever have to experience. But to have two daughters diagnosed with a terminal condition seems an incredibly cruel twist of fate.

Amazingly Abida Ahmed, from Lockleaze, is battling through the horrific trauma; yet she manages to care for herself, her three other children, and even cooks for her friends and neighbours on a regular basis.

When her daughter Hadiya was six months old she was diagnosed with a rare brain condition called GA-1, which affected proteins in her body.