A CALENDAR to support "incredible people" who care for newborn babies at Salisbury hospital will launch this week.

The charity calendar, which will support the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit (NICU) at Salisbury District Hospital, will be available from Friday.

Lucy O'Brien came up with the idea to create a project that would raise funds for the unit after her daughter, Iona, spent time in the NICU after being born prematurely.

She said: "We still have to be careful with Iona around germs, and a cold can turn into something pretty serious, but we have a very happy smiley girl and we could not be more thankful.

"If it wasn't for the incredible work of the doctors and nurses in NICU, my daughter would not have survived."

Other parents who had had experience of the NICU shared their stories through a Facebook page, and one user, Laura Brown (whose daughter, Hatty was also treated in the NICU) said using the page "has been a lovely way to celebrate how far the children have come, but also to honour some of the babies that sadly passed away".

Hatty, who is now over a year old, was born with a rare genetic condition and was transferred to the NICU at only 12 hours old, after having seizures. Laura said: "We cannot thank the nurses and doctors enough - they made a dark time bearable.

"The nurses are not only nurses for the babies, they become counsellors for the parents who are struggling to come to terms with what is happening. One night my husband and I broke down, and the nurses were there to pick us back up again.

"We cannot forget the doctors who kept us informed and worked quickly to make Hatty stable and get a diagnosis. They really are all incredible people".

One hundred per cent of the profits raised from calendar sales will go to the NICU, and local business have helped to support the cause by sponsoring individual pages. Karl Bulpitt took the photos for the calendar free of charge, using his mobile studio, Kate Elderkin-Shute offered to design the calendar and the printing was carried out by John Dollin Printing Services Ltd.

All the babies and children featured in the calendar spent time in the NICU, whether they were premature or unwell after birth.

The calendars are £8 each and can be purchased through the Facebook page 'NICU Charity Calendar 2017'.