Nurse ‘very proud’ to give birth to first child on NHS 70th anniversary

The as-yet-unnamed baby daughter of Erika and James Boulton, who was born at University College Hospital, London, on the 70th anniversary of the founding of the National Health Service (Dominic Lipinski/PA) Credit: PA Wire/PA Images

An NHS nurse has said it “means a lot” to have given birth to her first child on the day the health service celebrates its 70th anniversary.

Erika Boulton, 31, and husband James, 33, welcomed their daughter into the world at University College Hospital, London, at 5.44am on Thursday.

Ms Boulton, an intensive care nurse at the Royal Marsden NHS Foundation Trust, said: “This is a special day for us, because we have just become parents for the first time.

“It means a lot to me that my baby’s birth date is also the birth date of the NHS because I’m an NHS nurse.

“I’m very proud to be both a patient and a staff member of the NHS on this special day.”

The baby girl, who weighed nine pounds and is 57cm tall, has not yet been given a name.