Appleton miracle baby Betty Batt given Grand National honour

Betty Batt, from Appleton, defied the odds when she was born at 23 weeks in June 2017 and put up the strongest of fights to survive.

At under 1lb 7oz in weight after being born more than four months premature and just the size of a biro, the youngster spent the first 13 months of her life in hospital.

Now aged four, she has been named as the honorary 41st runner in this year’s Randox Grand National, which will take place on April 9.

Betty’s name will appear around the racecourse and in the racecard alongside the 40 horses taking part in the £1million race.

Betty Batt was born the size of a biro

The initiative will help raise awareness and funds for Alder Hey Hospital, which is treating Betty and has supported her family for years.

Alder Hey is also the official charity of the Randox Grand National Festival, with racegoers encouraged to donate to alderheycharity.org

After being delivered, Betty needed constant treatment in the neonatal intensive care unit at Liverpool Women’s Hospital.

Parents Phil and Karen were then left devastated when doctors discovered that Betty’s bowel had perforated in two places, leaving her so critically ill she had to be transferred to nearby Alder Hey Hospital by ambulance for emergency surgery.

It was to prove the first of a number of treatments as Betty regularly battled infections, requiring blood transfusions, blood cultures and lumbar punctures.

Betty Batt has been named the honorary 41st runner in this year's Grand National

Her liver was affected badly by her intravenous feeds, so even though she was still very small, she had to return to Alder Hey for another bowel operation.

Determined to reunite their family and bring Betty home to be with her brother Stanley and sister Martha, Betty’s parents were helped by the dedicated team of professionals at Alder Hey.

They trained them to have the knowledge and skills to deal with her tracheostomy and other medical needs, which meant Betty could finally go to her real home for the first time after 13 months in hospital.

Phil, who is head of drama at Cardinal Newman High School in Latchford, said: “Betty is just amazing. She is the most delightful, placid and brave little girl. A nurse once said to us, ‘Betty brings out the best in people’.

“Her journey will continue, and the remarkable NHS that saved her countless times will continue on this road with her.

Betty Batt was born the size of a biro

“She is our little miracle, and no matter what comes we will all continue to love her with everything we have, and with utter joy and immense gratitude to those who never gave up on her and gave us this most precious gift.”

Dickon White, The Jockey Club’s regional director for Aintree Racecourse and the north west, added: “Our relationships with those in the local community are so important to us all here at Aintree, and none more so than the close bond we have formed with Alder Hey Children’s Hospital over the past 20 years.

“The work they do is phenomenal and rightly receives not only nationwide, but worldwide recognition.

“We are proud to work with them throughout the year, not just during the Randox Grand National Festival, and it is our honour to name Betty as the 41st runner in 2022.

“By highlighting the Batt family’s story and promoting the work Alder Hey do for children and young people day in and day out, we hope to raise awareness and much needed funds to help other youngsters and their families.”