Birmingham Women’s and Children's Hospital and Charity has announced TV presenter Emma Willis as its newest Patron.

Emma has been an advocate of Birmingham Children’s Hospital for over 10 years and her patronage celebrates her continued commitment to support poorly children as well as her passion for maternity care.

Sutton Coldfield-born Emma will champion the hospitals so they can achieve their mission to improve the lives of women, children and families - regionally, nationally and internationally. As patron, her role is to raise awareness of the charity and the much-needed funds it requires to continually push boundaries in terms of treatment, care and world-leading research.

Accepting the patronage, the Love is Blind, The Voice and Delivering Babies presenter, said: “I’ve known for a long time how special Birmingham Children’s Hospital is, after it saved the life of one of my oldest and dearest friend’s sons.

“The impact of Birmingham Women’s and Children's Hospital and Charity is truly inspirational and I’m delighted to be combining my love for the Children’s with my passion for women’s health and maternity services to be able to make a real difference.

“When the charity asked me to be its next Patron I accepted without hesitation. It’s a dream come true for me. I’ve never been asked to be a Patron before, so it was an incredibly proud moment for me and my family. I’m keen to get stuck in and help raise awareness of the hospitals’ life-saving impact as well as the vital funds it needs to go above and beyond for patients.”

Emma joins Ben Francis, CEO and Founder of apparel-brand Gymshark, as the hospital and charity’s second Patron.

Birmingham Women’s and Children’s NHS Foundation Trust is the first of its kind in the UK, expertly delivering family-centred care through Birmingham Children’s Hospital and Birmingham Women’s Hospital. Collectively the two hospitals care for over 140,000 women, children, young people and their families from across the region and the UK each year.

Birmingham Women’s Hospital is one of only two dedicated women’s hospitals in the UK and boasts the busiest single site maternity unit, birthing approximately 8,200 babies a year. It also cares for around 900 of the region’s poorliest babies in its Neonatal Intensive Care Unit every year.

Birmingham Children’s Hospital is one of the UK’s leading specialist paediatric centres offering expert care to 100,000 children and young people from across the country every year. It is also home the largest single site paediatric intensive care unit in Europe.

For further information on Birmingham Women’s and Children’s NHS Foundation Trust visit bwc.nhs.uk.