Children with Cancer UK has announced a five-year partnership with fellow charity Beads of Courage UK.
The charities have been working together since 2019 on Beads of Courage UK’s oncology programme, which aims to offer support and strength to all children diagnosed with cancer while they receive treatment.
The extended partnership will ensure that the programme is available to children with cancer in 110 childhood cancer wards.
It will also help fund the Beads of Courage UK Siblings programme, a newly created initiative that will help children cope, record and tell their stories as their siblings undergo cancer treatment.
Under the partnership, Children with Cancer UK will donate 500 pairs of special, handcrafted beads to its highest fundraising runners at this year’s London Marathon, which takes place on 23 April.
The runners will then return one bead with a personalised note to a young person or child with cancer.
‘We share a tireless commitment’
Jo Elvin, chief executive of Children with Cancer UK, said: “We’re immensely proud to support Beads of Courage UK, and to help them continue their crucial work with children as they face the many challenges of their cancer treatment. Every single bead earned represents a significant milestone for these incredible children and is a moving testament to their resilience.
“It’s a vital mental health support tool for these children as they navigate the highs, lows and uncertainties of a cancer diagnosis and treatment. There is such synergy in the aims of Beads of Courage UK and Children With Cancer UK. We share a tireless commitment to being there for these wonderful children and their families during treatment and beyond.
“And now, with the new siblings programme, this support can be extended to ensure that every young person has the strength, courage and guidance they need when a brother or sister is diagnosed with cancer. We’re incredibly proud that our new partnership will help this crucial work continue in hospitals and oncology wards across the UK, and support thousands of children and their families.”
‘Amazing collaborative partnership’
John Drummond, co-founder of Beads of Courage UK, added: “As a family-run charity we’re absolutely delighted that our support from Children with Cancer UK has been extended for another five years.
“This amazing collaborative partnership will now allow us to expand our Beads of Courage UK programme. We will soon be able to support thousands more children whose lives have been impacted by childhood cancer.”
Accounts for the year ending 31 December 2021 show that Children with Cancer UK cut its expenditure from £15.3m in 2020 to £9.9m, while its income increased from £13.8m to £14.8m.
Meanwhile, Beads of Courage UK recorded an income of just over £250,000 in 2022, compared with more than £325,000 the year before.
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