Grandmother, 55, gives birth to her own GRANDCHILD after acting as a surrogate for her 31-year-old daughter who was born without a womb

A grandmother has given birth to her own grandchild – because her daughter was born without a womb.

Emma Miles, 55, who already has two of her own children, gave the ultimate gift by offering to be a surrogate for her daughter Tracey Smith, 31, who feared she would never have a child of her own after being diagnosed with Mayer-Rokitansky-Küster-Hauser Syndrome (MRKH).

Because Mrs Smith's ovaries still worked normally, she used IVF with her husband, Adam, 40, to create an embryo which was then implanted into Mrs Miles.

Even though Mrs Miles had already been through the menopause, she was able to be a surrogate because the baby was created from her daughter's eggs. Her womb was healthy enough to carry a child, though she needed to shed six stone (38kg) to reach a healthy weight and needed hormones to ensure the pregnancy took.

Older mothers, those over 35, face a higher risk of miscarriage and pre-eclampsia - a complication that can prove deadly to both woman and baby. But desperate to help her daughter, Mrs Miles decided to go ahead with surrogacy anyway.

Mrs Miles - a supermarket worker - gave birth to Evie Siân Emma Smith on January 16. She was healthy and weighed 7lbs 7oz, though she was born by caesarean section because Mrs Miles' natural labour was taking too long.

Emma Miles, 55, (right) was a surrogate for her own daughter, Tracey, and her husband, Adam, because Tracey had been born without a womb so couldn't have children naturally herself

Evie Smith was born by c-section on January 16th this year, weighing 7lbs 7oz – her parents Mr and Mrs Smith must now formally adopt her because parental rights automatically go to the surrogate and her partner – Mrs Smith's parents

Mrs Smith said: 'Every moment of heartache was so worth it just to have our little bundle in our arms. I am so grateful to mum for her amazing gift to us'