Doncaster family burgled whilst they were in hospital with their daughter

The devastated parents of two seriously ill children say they are 'heartbroken' after burglars raided their home - taking all of their life savings - while they were in hospital with their baby.
By Laura Andrew
Published 16th Sep 2019, 11:36 BST
Updated 18th Sep 2019, 09:14 BST
John and Paula in the hospital with Mia.John and Paula in the hospital with Mia.
John and Paula in the hospital with Mia.

Paula Ratcliffe, aged 33, and John Anderson, aged 35, from Wheatley, are fundraising money to get themselves back on their feet after tragic burglary left them feeling hopeless.

The break-in happened when the couple was at Sheffield children’s hospital with their eight-week-old baby Mia - who suffers from a bowel disease called Necrotising Enterocolitis.She had emergency surgery which resulted in 80 per cent of her bowel being taken away.

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The family will have to live at the hospital for the next six months to a year with Mia but also have three other daughters who need childcare.

Charlotte, 11 and Katie, 15, pictured. Picture: Marie Caley NDFP-17-09-19-WinchesterAv-4Charlotte, 11 and Katie, 15, pictured. Picture: Marie Caley NDFP-17-09-19-WinchesterAv-4
Charlotte, 11 and Katie, 15, pictured. Picture: Marie Caley NDFP-17-09-19-WinchesterAv-4

Paula said: “John gave up work to be with Mia and we have been staying with her at the hospital for the last several weeks.

“I came home on Thursday to discover that my house had been broken into.

“Both me and John are self-employed and our equipment had been stolen.”

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Paula is a nail technician and John is a roofer - they both kept their work tools in their home.

“They took everything, thousands of pounds of equipment which I have built up over the last ten years,” Paula continued.

“They took our safe which had all of our savings in it and have left us with nothing.

“I cried my eyes out when I first found out.”

The couple has four daughters in total - after the burglary, it was hard for them to return home.

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Paula said: “The girls couldn’t come home after school on Thursday.

“They were devastated and heartbroken.

“I kept having to show Charlotte that there was no one in the house so that she could sleep.”

One of their daughters, Emily, has cerebral palsy, so trips to and from the hospital are frequent, as well as coping with her other complex needs.

The burglars stole one of Emily’s feeding pumps.

“It’s disgusting- they’ve gone through everything.

“I don’t want to be alone in my house anymore.”

Paula and John have set up a gofundme page to get them back on their feet - the couple didn’t have home insurance at the time of the burglary due to the intense medical needs of their daughter keeping them at the hospital.

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Donations can be given here: https://www.gofundme.com/f/help-john-and-paula-get-back-on-their-feet?sharetype=teams&member=2866240&rcid=r01-156832397606-209b5e3bb07f41a2&pc=ot_co_campmgmt_m