• Harrison Ellmer contracted meningitis when he was three-weeks-old
• Doctors believed that they would not be able to save his life
  
• He was taken to a hospice and his life support machine was turned off
• But he continued to breathe and was soon well enough to go home
• Harrison has been left deaf in his right ear and with mild cerebral palsy but he is otherwise developing normally

By Emma Innes

PUBLISHED: 04:36 EST, 2 August 2013 | UPDATED: 09:45 EST, 2 August 2013

A baby taken to a hospice to die after contracting meningitis has stunned doctors by continuing to breathe, despite having his ventilator switched off.

Harrison Ellmer was taken to Bluebell Wood Children’s Hospice, in Sheffield, for what was thought would be his final moments with his parents Adam Ellmer and Sam Baker.

But incredibly, three-week-old Harrison proved he was a fighter and despite the machine being switched off, he continued to breathe.

Now Harrison, aged six months, has made an amazing recovery.

His mother, Mr Baker, 20, said: ‘I was holding Harrison with Adam in front of me and family around us. The nurse switched off the machine and left and we just stared at him.

‘No one said a word for 20 minutes. We watched him breathing on his own and he just carried on, getting better and better.

‘It was the happiest moment of our lives. After that, we couldn’t wait to come home. It was like bringing him back for the first time all over again.’

Harrison was born healthy but became ill a few weeks later and had to be taken by ambulance to Rotherham Hospital.

The youngster needed to be resuscitated and - fearing the worst - his parents even had him christened at the hospital.

Mr Ellmer, 23, said: ‘They didn’t know exactly what was wrong then but said he was a very poorly baby. He was on all kinds of antibiotics and treatments.

‘He was on the high dependency ward and they said it would go one of two ways.

‘He could stay there if he got better or would need to go to Sheffield Children’s Hospital if he got worse. Ten or 15 minutes later they said he needed to be moved.’

Harrison had two CT scans that evening after being transferred from Rotherham.

His father, a pipe fitter, said: ‘The news kept varying.

‘It went from them saying he was getting a little better to them telling us he might not make it. We didn’t know what to think or how to feel.’

Six days later Mr Ellmer and Ms Baker, from Rotherham, South Yorkshire, were given the devastating news that nothing more could be done for their son.

They made the choice for him to spend his final moments in peaceful Bluebell Wood.

Harrison’s illness has left him deaf in his right ear and with mild cerebral palsy but he is otherwise developing normally.

Sam said: ‘He is such a happy, healthy baby. He’s our little miracle.’

The couple have now raised more than £5,000 for Bluebell Wood.

Bluebell Wood fundraiser Gail Parkin said: ‘It’s wonderful to see Harrison looking so well after everything he went through. He’s certainly a tough little cookie.’