TWO mothers with four reasons to thank Colchester General Hospital have raised more than £5,000 to buy lifesaving equipment.

Emma Cole and Julie Cowen have each had two children cared for in the hospital’s special care baby unit.

The pair organised a ball in aid of the unit’s Children’s Heart Scanner Appeal and succeeded in raising £5,500 from more than 200 guests at the event, at Five Lakes Hotel, Tolleshunt Knights.

Miss Cole’s four-year-old twins, Eleanor and Macie, spent a month on the unit after being born nine weeks early. Mrs Cowen’s sons Teddy, five, and Robbie, two, were born eight and 11 weeks prematurely.

Miss Cole, 29, of Cowdray Avenue, said she would never forget the care given to her family at the baby unit.

She said: “Raising money is our way of saying thank you, but we know we can never fully repay the debt we owe.”

Mrs Cowan, of Mersea Road, added: “When you have a child in the special care baby unit, there’s a lot of worry and shock at first, but once you come in and realise the level of care provided, it puts you at ease.”

The pair held a similar event in 2007 and raised £22,000 to buy two incubators. They are already planning a third ball for October 2010.

The heart scanner appeal, launched in May, aims to raise £60,000 to buy a machine which can check babies for heart problems. So far £15,000 has been raised.

Acting ward sister Karen Moss said: “At the moment, we have to borrow a scanner from the outpatients’ unit.

“To have our own machine would be fantastic.

“It would save time and make diagnosis and treatment easier.”

Mrs Moss said the ball had been a huge boost to the fundraising efforts.

The special care baby unit has 18 cots and 32 staff and cares for more than 500 babies a year who are born prematurely or need special care after they arrive.

l Donations for the appeal can be sent to Graham Appleton, Children’s Services Fundraising Co-ordinator, care of Children’s Ward, Colchester General Hospital, Turner Road, Colchester, CO4 5JL.

Cheques should be made payable to the “Children’s Heart Scanner Appeal”, with “Account 4LO4” written on the back.