Mum of premature twins Catherine Armstrong plans to raise more than £2,000 for the Space to Grow Campaign for the premature babies unit in Bath.

Twins Edward and Jocelyn were born at 29 weeks in May, weighing less than 4lbs. Edward was in a critical condition for the first 24 hours as he had problems with his breathing.

Mrs Armstrong, 35, her husband James and their parents came up with a charity Christmas card in aid of the NICU appeal as a way of raising money to say thank you for the care the family received.

She has produced the card based on a painting by her husband’s 93-year-old grandmother.

She said: “ We know that Mary or Great Granny Nin as we know her is a great artist, so we looked at some of her paintings and chose one, which we named All is Bright, All is Calm.

“We think it illustrates the serene, peaceful feeling you have of the unit as the staff are so helpful there and if it wasn’t for their expertise my twins may not be alive.”

The two boys are now fighting fit at almost six months old and are healthy with no problems. The couple were living in Calne at the time of their sons’ birth but since moved to Groombridge, in East Sussex and they have even been drumming up support there.

Mrs Armstrong, who also has an older son William, aged two, said: “The staff at the unit were fantastic. They reassured us when our babies were at their most vulnerable time and they encouraged us to bond with them when they were so fragile.

“There is no amount of thanks we could give that would be enough but we want to help raise money for the unit, as it is quite cramped with all of the staff and patients. “ The family is producing 8,000 cards in packs of ten. They will be available to order for £3.99 a pack. The proceeds (£3.26 from each pack) will go to the Space to Grow Campaign.

To order cards please call Catherine Armstrong on 07796143132.