A COUPLE who wanted a baby brother or sister for their first IVF baby got more than they bargained for - when they ended up with triplets!

Ann-Marie and Chris Conway, from Leigh, managed to conceive on their first round of IVF treatment and gave birth to a healthy baby girl, Mary, now three years old.

They then decided to give IVF a second shot to give Mary a younger sibling - and three came along at once.

Mrs Conway, 35, will be the first mum to have triplets at Southend Hospital this year when they are delivered on Tuesday. Only two sets of triplets were delivered in the town last year.

She said: "We were more than happy with one child, but when Mary got to two years old, we thought it would be nice for her to have a brother or sister.

"The first scan at six weeks revealed twins, which was a shock. And then four weeks later, we found out we had triplets.

"It was as much of a surprise as if the whole pregnancy had happened naturally."

Mrs Conway said after their first success with IVF, she and her husband were happy to give it a second go.

She said: "I was never sure I wanted to try assisted conception, as I had read how stressful it is. But it worked first time with Mary and there were no complications at all."

Mrs Conway praised the help she was getting from Southend Hospital.

She said: "The clinic and the help I have received have been faultless.

"Because I am categorised as high risk, I have seen the consultant every two weeks.

"I have also met the anaesthetist and consultant paediatrician and had a tour of the special care baby unit."

Last year there were 3,772 births in the borough, including 65 sets of twins and two sets of triplets.