Parents have shared stories of their "beautiful" families after a fertility clinic celebrated its 1,000th birth.
Eight years after Bourn Hall Fertility Clinic opened in Wymondham, families have expressed the "relief" they felt when having children through the facility, which provides NHS fertility treatment to improve the chances of natural conception.
Kirsty and Dan Mitchell from Watton had been trying for a baby for 18 months when their GP referred them for fertility tests at the clinic.
Mrs Mitchell said: “I was about to turn 30 and became more aware of my biological clock ticking, I'd always told myself that if there was ever an issue with not being able to conceive that I would get advice about it because I didn’t want to leave it too late."
A laparoscopy showed that both her fallopian tubes were blocked and she would never have been able to get pregnant naturally.
She added: “Finding out that the reason that we couldn’t conceive was actually a relief.
"The unknown was really frustrating especially when friends were getting pregnant and I was thinking. ‘why not me?’
"The ‘not knowing why’ seemed like the worst part.
"With a fertility diagnosis we were able to move forward with the appropriate treatment at Bourn Hall which enabled us to have a baby.”
Their son, Jenson, was born on October 20 last year and recently celebrated his first birthday.
Mrs Mitchell said: “It was so lovely when he finally arrived, our family was complete."
Another baby born at the clinic came when fertility tests revealed that Vicki Goddard and her husband Ricky, from Long Stratton, would need IVF.
The couple underwent treatment at Bourn Hall which was successful first time.
Mrs Goddard said: “We had hoped that we would be able to start a family as soon as we had got married.
"It seemed as though everyone around us was falling pregnant with amazing ease and we had hoped we would find it easy too.
“Nine months later our gorgeous Dylan turned up and life changed for the better.
“Without the amazing team at Bourn Hall we wouldn’t be where we are now with the most beautiful family that we were not sure we would ever have.”
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