A mother delivered her dead baby on her own after hospital bosses sent her home.

Nicola Mitchell, was 13 weeks pregnant when she went into the Royal Sussex County Hospital’s accident and emergency department.

Doctors gave her a scan, but said she had miscarried, there was no baby inside her and sent her home.

But a few hours later, Miss Mitchell, 24, was terrified when she gave birth to her lifeless child, with Che, four, Luvena, three, and one-year-old Tryphena, at home.

Miss Mitchell, of Davey Drive, Hollingdean, said: “It was horrible to see my baby like that. They sent me home, then at about 7 o clock I was in the bath and started having contractions.

“They had told me there might still be some blood clots, so I thought it might just be that. When it came out it was a baby and I couldn’t believe they had left that inside me. It was bigger than my fist.

“The little one was asleep, but the others were in the hallway. I didn’t want them to see.”

Miss Mitchell had been to accident and emergency on Tuesday and kept overnight. After a scan on Wednesday, doctors told her there was no baby inside her and sent her home.

Distressed Ms Mitchell called her mother, who contacted the hospital, but had to wait hours for a response.

She said: “At 11.55pm the gynaecologist called me back. She said if I liked I could come into the hospital, but they couldn’t come out.

“I was expecting someone to come and see me or they could have offered me some advice. I asked if I could go in the next day and explained I had the children there.

“Getting three children to the hospital at midnight and getting them out of bed isn’t possible. I was told it was that or nothing.

“I was hoping a paramedic or someone could just check I was okay but I wasn’t offered anything.”

Miss Mitchell said she was shocked the hospital had failed to see her baby on the scan, then offered her no help when she was distressed.

She said: “They haven’t told me anything. I’ve still got my baby in a box at home. I’m going to bury it at my nan’s grave.

“The whole thing was so confusing. “ In a statement Brighton and Sussex University Hospital’s head of midwifery, Deborah Holden, said: “It is always extremely sad and distressing when a pregnancy ends in a miscarriage and we do all we can to support women through this.

“Following a scan which revealed that Nicola had miscarried, she was given medical advice and support in hospital.

“When her mother called the hospital the following evening, both a midwife and then an obstetrician telephoned Nicola at home to talk through her concerns.

“The doctor suggested that she should call 999 and come back to hospital by ambulance but she declined.”

Since being approached by The Argus the hospital said a midwife would be in touch with Ms Mitchell to offer her further help.