A wedding day service for end-of-life patients at Hinchingbrooke and Peterborough City hospitals is to launch after an overwhelming response to a recent public appeal.

Natasha Steels-Webb, a critical outreach nurse practitioner for the North West Anglia NHS Foundation Trust (NWAFT), received around 200 emails from members of the public and local wedding service businesses after launching a public appeal three months ago.

Planning a dream wedding can take months of preparation – from finding the right dress, organising flowers, booking a photographer, and arranging all the decorations.

But for others, time is precious; and Natasha and her colleagues created a portable ‘Wedding Box’ to help make the day as memorable as possible.

From a handful of decorations and posies, the idea has snowballed, and the team now has a beautiful collection of silk flowers, bouquets, vases, tiaras, chair covers (made by one of the hospital’s volunteers) and even a wedding gown.

In addition, numerous offers from businesses to provide services at short notice mean Natasha is now able to compile a directory of contacts offering everything from gowns and outfits to hair and makeup, flowers, balloons, wedding cakes, photographers and much more.

She said: “Myself and a colleague decided to create the wedding box after a patient we were caring for had become very unwell and it was clear she was not going to recover.

“She had been with her current partner for many years, but they just hadn't got around to getting married - and this was something they both wanted.

“Although we were able to fulfil their wishes, with help from all the relevant teams, we felt that we could do something to make future weddings even more special.

“We have been overwhelmed by the generosity of so many people whose kindness means that this can now happen for patients from now on.”

Natasha added: “It is difficult to put into words what a difference these weddings can make – but you can see the appreciation in the eyes of the patient and their loved ones that you have been able to make a difference – not purely because it is your job, but because you truly care.”

The team has now decided to close the appeal for physical donations due to limited storage capacity.