The parents of little William Mead, who lost his life to sepsis after the family were failed by the NHS, are expecting another "miracle" baby but are determined to continue working with health officials to ensure other families are not put through the horror they have suffered.

William died only weeks after his first birthday in December 2014 and a report published in January revealed 16 failures by NHS staff to identify how seriously ill William was. This resulted in health secretary Jeremy Hunt making a public apology to Melissa and Paul Mead and to several health organisations working together to create a sepsis awareness campaign.

Melissa has already met Mr Hunt on three occasions and will be travelling back to London on April 27 for a fourth meeting to discover how much closer the launch of that campaign is. It is something Paul and Melissa are committed to seeing through in their son's memory.

"We have had input into it and we feel we are at the heart of the campaign," said Melissa, of Glasney Place in Penryn. "It is very bittersweet because we have suffered the most catastrophic loss but we are doing this for William - to keep his memory alive we have to share him with the world.

"People will remember William Mead and that's all parents want, to be proud of their child and to show them off. We are trying to channel our grief into something positive. We want to ensure the public health campaign is solely about sepsis and is not diluted by it involving other childhood illnesses."

Other positives to come out of the meetings is a sepsis registry, which is being created by the Sepsis Trust, and sepsis symptom cards that are now included in the Bounty packs that are being sent out to 800,000 pregnant women.

Melissa, 29, is one of those women to receive the card as she is expecting a child in early October. "That came as a shock to say the least," she said. "William was a miracle and this baby is a gift from William. I am at high risk so they are keeping their eyes on me and are being extra vigilant.

"It is stirring up a lot of emotions because William should be here to share this with us, but this will be a whole new person we can talk to about William."

Paul, 32, and Melissa are proud of what has been achieved in William's name. "William's 382 days on this earth have made more of an impact than I could ever make in a lifetime," said Melissa. "People have taken William to their hearts and that means a lot to us."

In addition to raising awareness of sepsis, the Meads continue to raise money for the Sepsis Trust. An online appeal at justgiving.com/williamoscarmead, launched last October has so far raised a staggering £124,153 and a new interactive ebook will be launched soon which has contributions from around 50 top illustrators.

"Everything we do is born from love because we loved William so fiercely and so passionately and if by sharing him it helps other people it has all be worthwhile," said Melissa.