A GRIEVING mum who lost one of her twin babies, suffered more upset when her car was clamped at Gloucestershire Royal Hospital.

Kate Potter, 22, was left cradling surviving twin Max as she waited four hours for the contraption to be removed.

Medical staff, including a doctor, pleaded with parking attendants to take the clamp off, but they refused.

Max and his twin Ethan were born prematurely at 26 weeks in June. They each weighed less than 2lbs.

Ethan died three weeks later, but Max battled for survival and only left hospital for the first time last Sunday.

Now weighing 6lbs 11ozs the tiny baby needs constant care and oxygen equipment everywhere he goes.

Kate was visiting the hospital for Max's 9am eye appointment last Wednesday when her clamping ordeal began.

Kate was forced to park her Ford Focus in a disabled bay at the Great Western Road hospital as allocated antenatal spaces were full.

To her relief she managed to find a space in the disabled bay on the advice of hospital staff.

But when Kate returned with Max from his appointment, an hour later, her vehicle had been clamped – and she was faced with a £70 release fee.

Kate's husband Jason, 27, said: "She had to feed and change Max as she waited for the clamp to be removed

"Max is on oxygen too and there is a lot to carry around.

"A doctor spoke with the parking attendant, and requested removal of the clamp and the attendant refused."

Four hours later the clamp was finally taken off after Jason managed to get through to a hospital official who approved the clamp's removal.

An exhausted Kate eventually got back to their Eastern Avenue home at 2.30pm.

But the incident has left Kate and Jason furious.

"I can understand the clamping firm's viewpoint, fair enough," said Jason. "They are just doing their job. But why did it take so long to get the clamp taken off?

"They just had no sense of compassion, they could see Kate had the baby and was suffering."

He added: "What's really needed is better parking for parents like us."

Graham Marsh, Gloucestershire Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust's director of property and medical engineering said that in the circumstances the clamping fine was waived.

He said: "If you park in a disabled space and you are not entitled to do so, your car will be clamped which ordinarily will cost you a £70 release fee.

"This procedure has been implemented because of the large number of people using disabled spaces when they are not entitled.

"On this occasion, trust management agreed to waive the release fee and recall the clamping firm.

"Clamping is carried out by an external company employed by the trust and therefore it may take time to release cars when clamped".

James Booth, director of The Wheel Clamping Company in Blackpool, said: "We do take instructions from the hospital and cannot take off a clamp without their say-so."