A concert for Esmé: Supporting neonatal care through music and community

Parents of Esmé Allegra Smith, who was born sleeping at 38 weeks, are holding a live music concert this evening in Kettering to raise money for Northamptonshire Health Charity’s neonatal and maternity appeals.

The community event at St Peter & St Paul Church features Salvo Brass, a band Esmé’s father Chris has played with for the past decade. Donations collected during the concert will help fund improved bereavement suites at Northampton General Hospital and Kettering General Hospital.

Opening up about her family’s experiences, Esmé’s mother Carmen Smith shared how important it is for families like hers to raise both funds and awareness for the baby loss community.

“It relies on families like us that have had to use that space in the hospital; that understand how important it is that things are updated and that facilities are more appropriate and more comfortable for families,” Carmen said.

She said she hopes the donations from this evening’s concert will help upgrade the bereavement suites used by grieving families in hospital. She stressed how important it is for parents to have a quiet, separate room away from the delivery wards while they process their loss.

“It means everything to us to honour Esmé in this way and make things a little easier for families navigating their own journeys.”

Esmé was stillborn on 27th May 2022 at Kettering hospital, when Carmen was 38 weeks pregnant. She said she had what ''seemed like a normal pregnancy'' at the time and had no indication that anything was wrong with her baby.

Carmen reflected on the evening before Esmé’s delivery and explained that nothing could have prepared her for what was going to happen next.

“I thought, ‘Two weeks early for a second child isn’t out of the ordinary.’ I thought, ‘This is it — we’re starting labour… now the contractions are beginning… how exciting.

''And that very day, we'd put the car seat in the car. Her room was all ready, clothes washed – as you do, but during the night I felt an awful lot of pain.''

Carmen remembered being taken to hospital and said she felt ‘alarmed’ by how quickly she was surrounded by so many people.

“20 minutes before delivery, everything changed.''

She reflected on the moment she learned her daughter was stillborn and said it felt like a “trap door” had given way beneath her. She added that coming to terms with the loss was incredibly difficult after anticipating the arrival of a healthy baby.

For the Smith family, raising funds to improve maternity facilities is a vital part of Esmé’s legacy and represents their ongoing commitment to opening conversations about baby loss. Carmen shared that as well as fundraising, keeping her daughter's memory alive is just as important.

''Anytime we are able to say Esme's name or hear about other people talking about her is just really lovely for us – we talk about our living children in the same way we talk about her.

“Life will never be the same again, but it doesn’t always have to be as hard as it is at the beginning. You can choose to turn your tragedy into something positive – whether by having conversations, raising funds, or talking about it openly.”

''We think of stars when we think of Esme.''

Since Esmé’s loss, her family has organised multiple fundraising efforts, including Esmé Day at Chester House and Chris’s planned London marathon challenge in Spring 2026, whereby he has started a GoFundMe.

The family say the upcoming concert will be a heartfelt tribute to Esmé’s legacy, while offering support to families who have endured or are coping with baby loss. Carmen said the evening will include songs about rainbows, stars and sunshine as a positive way to remember her daughter, alongside her community.

Carmen added: “It means everything to us to honour Esmé in this way and make things a little easier for families navigating their own journeys.”

The concert is at St Peter & St Paul Church in Kettering and starts at 7pm. Admission is free and donations will be accepted at the venue.

For more information and support about baby loss and bereavement visit Northampton General Hospital's website or call the Sands Baby Loss Helpline on 0808 164 3332 or email the team at [email protected]