It is the nightmare every parent dreads, but none expect to have to go through. Jude Sheerin and Dylan Dronfield look at how parents cope with the loss of a child.

FOR most of us, coping with the loss of a parent is something we know we will have to suffer, however unreal the prospect can sometimes seem. But the loss of a child is an event few can comprehend, let alone prepare for.

And for Chancellor Gordon Brown and his wife Sarah, grieving for the loss of their baby daughter Jennifer Jane, the consequences are likely to be depression, despair and stress, according to a leading psychologist.

Professor Cary Cooper says the couple are likely to have overwhelming feelings of loss and confusion. And Mr Brown's delight at parenthood and his daughter's apparent improvement in health only days ago may make the grieving process even more difficult.

"Obviously it's a devastating thing to happen to any parent and the stress is enormous," Prof Cooper says. "The baby had a personality, a name and had been baptised which will make it even harder for them."

Prof Cooper, an expert in psychology and health at the University of Manchester Institute of Science and Technology, said the Browns would need time to grieve before they could begin to move on.

"Everyone copes with grief differently but there has got to be a grieving process first. Some people get very despondent, some people withdraw within themselves and others get very angry when dealing with bereavement.

"They seem like a very strong couple but they will need a lot of support."

A spokeswoman for the premature baby charity Bliss said she hoped the Browns would be able to come to terms with the devastating loss of their daughter.

"Our hearts go out to the Brown family for the loss of Jennifer," she says. "Although the majority of premature babies thrive and grow into healthy children, sadly some babies are born just too early, too small or too sick to survive.

"Hopefully Gordon and Sarah can keep with them the happiness and joy when their baby was born and this will sustain them in the undoubtedly difficult times ahead."

The neo-natal unit where baby Jennifer Brown lost her battle for life yesterday is staffed by more than 100 nurses - all specially trained to deal with bereaved parents. The Simpson Memorial Maternity Pavilion, at Edinburgh's Royal Infirmary, is a referral centre for seriously ill infants from the south east of Scotland and it is vital staff are ready to deal with any loss of life.

Its nurses are taught counselling as part of their core neo-natal training but many have professional counselling qualifications, including diplomas and degrees. Formal counselling sessions are offered to those who have lost their child but parents are also counselled throughout their infant's sickness.

In the case of very serious illness, they are offered the chance to be close to their baby in its final hours. In the case of the Browns, the couple were able to hold little Jennifer Jane as she passed away.

The Simpson's also has an all-denominational chapel where parents whose children are ill or who die at the unit, are invited to seek some spiritual solace.

And the process of consoling parents in their grief does not end with the child's death. A senior nurse at the unit last night said the Chancellor and his wife will be invited to a service for bereaved parents.

The event takes place every October, one week before Remembrance Sunday. The annual multi-faith service is packed with bereaved parents who come together to celebrate the tragically brief lives of their children.

For the Browns, it may be just one stage in a process which has no quick solutions and no short-cut to normality. There is no doubt that Jennifer Jane's heartbreakingly brief life will have marked her parents' lives for ever.