AMBIENT mood lighting, a Bluetooth surround sound system and a fixed birthing pool are some of the improved facilities being offered to mums-to-be at Glan Clwyd Hospital.

The new facilities are part of the hospital's refurbished Midwifery Led Unit (MLU).

The MLU offers families the choice of receiving one-to-one care led by a midwife. The unit is run by midwives, and offers a more homely environment for women with a low-risk pregnancy to give birth in.

Lorraine Gardner, matron for Maternity Services at Glan Clwyd Hospital, said: “The whole development has been focussed on creating a home-from-home experience for women receiving midwifery-led care at Glan Clwyd Hospital.

"We want to be able to give all the mums using our services the best possible experience. Being able to play their own music while here and set ambient mood lighting which they can set will really help achieve a relaxing, calm environment.

“We have a fabulous team of midwives, midwife support workers and health care support workers who work in our MLU, and the enhanced facilities will help them continue to deliver safe, effective care to our women.

“We are particularly excited to have the fixed birthing pool, which is a big improvement on the portable one we had previously in our MLU. We would like to thank The League of Friends for their substantial donation to help us achieve the purchase of this pool.

“Water provides a calming, peaceful, protected space for women in labour, while also helping women get into positions which are comfortable for both labour and birth.”

Refurbishment work was completed by Denbigh-based Pen y Bryn Joinery.