Down’s but not out

It was further fuelled by criticism over the programme's depiction of the way Petal (Janet) Mitchell's parents Billy and Honey were treated by health professionals, her mother's temporary rejection of the baby, and the reaction of certain other residents of Albert Square.

Now, in the latest twist to the plot, with Petal only a few months old, Honey has discovered she is pregnant again. Cue much anguish and heart-searching over whether to carry out antenatal testing for Down's and whether the result would make any difference.

The story has particular resonance for Jo Yarnall, whose eldest daughter Hannah was born with Down's in July 2002.

"I had to have an emergency caesarean. She had a hole in her heart and they had to resuscitate her. When I came round, my husband "Mark walked into the room crying," she recalled.

Not only had he just found out that the baby had Down's, but doctors had also told him the next 24 hours would be critical.

"Because I didn't know anything at all about Down's syndrome, I imagined somebody sitting like a vegetable, rocking backwards and forwards. I thought: What kind of life will she have? Will she be better off dead?'," admitted Jo.

"My husband said: I don't want to lose my daughter'. I didn't go and see her for about 12 hours because I was waiting for somebody to wheel me down to the special care baby unit. When I saw her hooked up to all the tubes, that was it. I didn't want to lose her."

Hannah spent the first five weeks of her life in hospital and underwent open heart surgery at just nine weeks. But when the baby was 10 months old, Jo was surprised to find out she was pregnant again, with middle daughter Rebecca.

She decided not to have any invasive antenatal tests because of the increased risk of miscarriage.

"Our feelings mirrored those of Billy and Honey about what to do with testing. We discussed what we would do if we had another child with Down's syndrome or another disability. We both decided we were going to have the baby no matter what.

"Again when we had our third child, Rachel, we went through the same and wondered how we were going to divide our attention and give Hannah the attention she needed."

Jo and Mark went on to create a website to "celebrate Hannah's life and blow away stereotypes" as they put it.

"We wanted to portray that having a child with Down's syndrome was a positive thing. Had I seen something like that when Hannah was born, I would have had a completely different outlook," explained Jo. In 2004 she also set up a support group called PROUD (Parents, Relatives and Others Understanding Down's).

"Hannah's shown me how to love unconditionally and how to be patient," said Jo.

"She's introduced me to new people and we've made new friends. She's four years old and in a mainstream school. Every milestone that she achieves is a celebration."

Last year, Hannah was asked to appear in the EastEnders episode where Billy and Honey visited a Down's syndrome support group.

"She was an absolute star on the day. They (actors Perry Fenwick and Emma Barton) were really lovely people and he was an absolute natural with the children.

"We have found that through having this storyline, people have opened up and spoken to us about Down's syndrome. Lots of people have admitted that they didn't have the courage to ask us about it for fear of offending us.

"Some of it has made uncomfortable viewing, like when Honey rejected Janet and Peggy first rejected her, but things have turned around. Now she's been accepted and is the apple of everybody's eye."

A spokesperson for the Down's Syndrome Association said: "EastEnders has approached the storyline sensitively, taking advice from us and from the families of children with Down's syndrome at every step of the process.

"Ultimately people with Down's syndrome are under-represented on mainstream television, and this plot will go some way to redress that. "EastEnders' current intentions are for Billy and Honey's baby to grow up as any other baby would in a soap.

"The DSA would love to see a child with Down's syndrome become a permanent member of the cast as we believe it would be a fantastic opportunity to bring it into mainstream awareness, and to present a 21st century picture of family life for those who have children with the condition."