When the woman carrying her fell 90 feet from a tower block to her death on a concrete floor below, the fact that her unborn baby survived at all was miraculous – and amazed the nation.

Now almost 18 months on from the horrifyingly traumatic circumstances that surrounded her premature birth, that baby is continuing to defy the odds that seemed stacked against her – by growing into a happy and healthy young girl.

The Daily Mail can today reveal the uplifting survival story of little Posie – a child whose very existence touches all who come into contact with her.

Posie’s unique entry into the world came when her heavily pregnant birth mother, Emma Atkinson, suffered a fatal fall in October 2024 from the ninth floor of flats in Leeds.

Ms Atkinson died at the foot of Shakespeare Towers and initially there was little hope that the child she had been carrying for almost nine months could be saved.

But incredibly the medical team managed to deliver the baby girl alive – although she had a fractured tibia and a punctured lung – with the story making national headlines.

Now we can reveal what happened next – and how Posie continues to defy medical expectation.

After a month in intensive care, the baby was released into the care of the family of her natural father Michael Swanson on a temporary basis – with the extended family then left to arrive at a longer term arrangement that would work for all parties.

 Posie was delivered with a fractured tibia and a punctured lung

Following a month-long stay in intensive care, the infant was temporarily placed in the custody of her biological father Michael Swanson’s family

Posie is now officially in Lauren’s care at her tidy semi-detached home in Leeds. Despite the horrifying fall on October 22, 2024, the youngster is thriving and shows no lasting ill effects

Michael’s younger sister Lauren Mitchell stepped forward and volunteered to raise Posie alongside her own daughter Lealea, six, as Michael’s lifestyle was too chaotic to make him a realistic candidate to raise the baby

By the family’s own admission Michael’s lifestyle was too chaotic to make him a realistic candidate to raise the baby – but his own younger sister Lauren Mitchell was already a model parent to her own child.

And Lauren quickly stepped forward and volunteered to raise Posie alongside her own daughter Lealea, six.

Now Posie is officially in the care of Lauren at her neat semi in Leeds and Posie is thriving, suffering no lasting ill effects from the horrifying fall on October 22, 2024.

When we visited Lauren she and her young family had just got back from a trip to Disneyland together and appeared like any other young family to anyone unaware of Posie’s astonishing history.

Former care worker and beautician Lauren, now a full-time mum, said: ‘Posie is the most beautiful little girl.

‘She is a happy, healthy, thriving little girl and everywhere we go we get comments on how pretty she is, which is lovely.

‘Thankfully there have been no effects from the fall, which is pretty amazing.

‘At first people were amazed that she survived, but as it turned out she didn’t even need to spend all that long in hospital.

She’s a good sleeper, she feeds well and is just a joy to be around.’

Lauren went on: ‘When Emma fell from the tower block it was so devastating for the whole family – it was the worst tragedy anyone could imagine, especially as she was close to becoming a mum again.

‘While everyone was coming to terms with her death we were at the same time thinking, “What will happen to Posie?”

‘The solution to that was always going to be found within the family, there was never any consideration given to adoption outside the family.

Lauren added: ‘I never had any doubts at all about being the person responsible for raising her, I just wanted to be able to bring love and happiness and a stable future for her.

‘Lealea is very caring and loving towards her as well, it’s clear that they’re going to have a close relationship as they grow up.

‘We’ve worked closely with social services from day one.

When the time comes, Lauren says she will tell her all about her mum.

She explained: ‘Even now I point out pictures of Emma and say to Posie, “That’s your mummy,” but at the moment she’s too young to understand.

‘The day will come though when she has lots of questions and I’m prepared for that, I will tell her all about her mum and that she was a loved little girl.

‘I have fantastic support from my family and all my friends, many who have children of their own. Emma’s family knows they are welcome to come and see Posie whenever they want.

‘Emma and I were friends, we got on really well and I hope that she’d be pleased that Posie is safe and cared for in a home full of love.’

At the time Emma died, her eldest daughter, Demi, 18, was also pregnant and had her son, Dolton, with her partner, Alfie.

Lauren went on: ‘Demi visits regularly, which is nice because her little boy and Posie are a similar age and we’re sure they’ll be close.’

An inquest will be held into Emma’s death in due course, although proceedings are currently ‘suspended’ according to the West Yorkshire coroner, who said the police investigation into Emma’s death has not concluded.

Lauren added: ‘No one will ever know for certain what happened that day but it was awful and something Emma’s family will never forget.’

Emma Atkinson, 38, died just a month before her 39th birthday after falling 90ft from a window in the tower block in Leeds, West Yorkshire, on October 22 

Relatives previously told the Daily Mail they believe she had leant too far out the window while smoking and plunged to her death (Pictured: A neighbour’s window in the same tower block) 

A large number of floral tributes were left at the tower block after mother-of-five Ms Atkinson’s death 

Foul play is not suspected, but different theories emerged as to what caused the fall at the tower block in the city’s Burmantofts district.

It was feared that Emma may have taken her own life while visiting her father, David Atkinson, at his ninth floor flat.

However family members have also raised the possibility that she died as the result of a tragic accident, toppling out of the window by accident.

Residents pointed out that latches on the windows, which could be triggered accidentally, allowed them to open wide enough for a person to fall out.

An inquest opened on October 24, 2024, two days after the incident.

Area Coroner Oliver Longstaff said Ms Atkinson was declared dead at 12pm. He added that an inquest into her death would be required, with a date yet to be fixed.

Mr Longstaff said: ‘It appears Emma Atkinson died at Leeds General Infirmary where she had been brought, having fallen from her father’s flat on the ninth floor below to the ground beneath.’

Mr Longstaff added: ‘I would like to take this opportunity to express to Ms Atkinson’s family and friends my sincere condolences upon their loss.’

Emma had learned she was about to become a grandmother for the first time just days before her death.

Former care worker and beautician Lauren, now a full-time mum, said: ‘Posie is the most beautiful little girl’

Lauren says that when the time comes, she will tell Posie all about her biological mother

Lauren said: ‘I never had any doubts at all about being the person responsible for raising her, I just wanted to be able to bring love and happiness and a stable future for her’

A family friend of Emma’s said: ‘She had a tough life. She had four kids aged between 19 and a toddler and was about to become a mum again at 38.

‘Michael has a past and had spent time in prison but has stayed out of trouble recently and they were excited about having a daughter together. No one can imagine how or why this happened.’