Wells MP Tessa Munt has paid tribute in Parliament to local couple John and Holly Osman, who lost their twins Logan and Lottie in 2018, as she called for national standards in bereavement care.

Speaking during a debate for Baby Loss Awareness Week, Ms Munt said the experience of losing a child "transcends all political differences" and urged the government to ensure every parent has access to the same quality of bereavement support.

John Osman, who lives in Wells with his wife Holly and their six-year-old twins Alex and Amelia, is a former Conservative leader of Somerset County Council and the first chair of the Somerset Rivers Authority.

In November 2018, the Osmans' twins Logan and Lottie were born four months premature and died less than an hour after birth.

With Mrs Osman watching from the public gallery, Ms Munt told MPs: "This Baby Loss Awareness Week, we honour those children who are loved and missed, and we recognise the parents, siblings, families and friends who carry their memories every day. Some seven years ago, John and Holly lost their much loved twins, Logan and Lottie, five months into their pregnancy. Logan was with them for 15 minutes and Lottie for 57 minutes. Registering their births and deaths will remain one of the hardest things they have ever had to do."

The Osmans received specialist support from the Royal United Hospital in Bath through its Forget Me Not suite, something Ms Munt said should be standard across the country.

She added: "The power of compassionate, skilled bereavement care cannot be overstated. It helps parents begin to process trauma, to create memories and to honour a life, however short. That care does not erase loss, but it brings dignity, acknowledgement and a foundation for healing."

Ms Munt urged the government to make bereavement care a national standard, saying "excellent bereavement care should not be a matter of luck or postcode".

She concluded: "We cannot take away the pain of loss, but we can ensure that no parent walks through it alone."

• Read more: Wells residents urged to act fast on council priorities plan
• Read more: Reform closes gap in Shepton and Wells as Lib Dems hold lead in new election poll

Sign up for our free weekly newsletter to get the latest news direct to your inbox every Friday at https://wells.nub.news/newsletter

H/T: LDRS/Daniel Mumby