BABY Austin Pentland was so eager to meet his new family that he didn't wait for his mum to get to hospital - he decided to be born at home.

Kerry Haw, 25, of Dringhouses, York, had settled down on Sunday night when she started to feel uncomfortable.

Remembering her daughter Dionne-Alice's lengthy birth, Kerry decided to wait until 5am to phone the hospital, to be told her contractions were a minute apart and to dial 999.

Only ten minutes after the paramedics arrived, healthy baby Austin was born in the couple's bedroom, weighing 7lb 14oz.

Kerry said: "My partner, Gary, is partially-sighted so he couldn't drive me to the hospital. I am so grateful to the paramedics. It all looked so organised but it was chaos.

"It was quite relaxing to have him at home."

Kerry and Gary took Austin into Dionne-Alice's bedroom, so she could meet her new baby brother.

Kerry added: "She slept right through it, but she was amazed when she saw him. They were both crying."

Both mother and baby were declared healthy by a midwife, and did not have to go to hospital.

Updated: 10:55 Friday, June 06, 2003