Beneficiaries 2022
Here are the details of charity projects The Light Fund supported in 2023, as a result of fundraising in 2022.
The ADD-Vance ADHD and Autism Trust - £4,185
ADD-vance is passionate about understanding, embracing and celebrating neurodiversity. The beneficiaries of the funding will be the families of neurodivergent children. ADD-vance support groups are age or topic specific and are facilitated by specialists. The Light Fund’s donation will be used to run weekly support groups for parents and carers of neurodiverse children across the county of Hertfordshire, either face to face or online.
Annie Mawson’s Sunbeams Music Trust - £5,000
Annie Mawson’s Sunbeams delivers community music therapy to over 2,000 disadvantaged and disabled children and adults throughout Cumbria. The Light Fund donation will enable the delivery of Digital Sunbeams – when four specialist musicians will help 42 disadvantaged and disenfranchised young people improve their quality of life, self-esteem, emotional and mental health through the creative freedom of music via Zoom technology.
Barons Court Project - £5,175
Barons Court Project is a day centre for people who are homeless and those living with mental health difficulties on a low income. One of the ways by which the charity supports its guests is through its Home(less) Made social enterprise initiative where guests create designs for t-shirts, greeting cards, tote bags etc., which are then sold via the organisation’s website and on market stalls. The Light Fund’s donations will cover the salary costs of its Social Enterprise Manager for four months to run this project.
Berkshire MS Therapy Centre - £5,400
The Berkshire MS Therapy Centre supports the health and wellbeing of people living with Multiple Sclerosis across Berkshire and some areas of Oxfordshire, Hampshire and Surrey.
Following members’ feedback, the charity wants to create online resources helping its MS members to exercise at home and The Light Fund’s grant will allow for the creation of six advisory films with a professional videographer.
Birth Trauma Association - £4,800
The Birth Trauma Association (BTA) is a UK charity largely run by volunteers. It is principally a mental health charity, supporting parents (mostly, but not exclusively, mothers) experiencing psychological distress as a result of traumatic birth. The Light Fund donation will enable the charity’s very old and clunky website to be updated thereby raise awareness of its activities for those who need it.
Bowel Cancer UK - £4,550
The Light Fund’s donation will help to fund the design and print costs of the ‘Treating advanced bowel cancer’ health information resource which is due for a review in 2023. Aimed at patients, it provides an overview of advanced bowel cancer, ie when it has spread from the bowel to other parts of the body. It will also be helpful for family and friends of people affected by advanced bowel cancer who will be better informed about their loved one’s illness.
The Brain Tumour Charity - £5,000
To create Paediatric Information booklets – offering the charity’s parent community a tangible, informative and supportive resource, when their child receives a brain tumour diagnosis. These booklets can also be used by Health Care professionals, to be able to offer a holistic approach to supporting the entire family through a brain tumour diagnosis.
Breast Cancer Now - £5,000
The Light Fund’s donation with further support the charity’s specialist Helpline and Ask Our Nurses service. Both are free support services that allows Breast Cancer Now to be there for anyone affected by breast cancer. Callers include people who are concerned about a breast change, people waiting for test results, women facing treatment choices (such as whether to have chemotherapy), people who have recently been diagnosed with secondary breast cancer, and friends, relatives, partners and children of people with breast cancer.
Brittle Bone Society - £5,000
The Brittle Bone Society is the sole organisation set up to address the needs of people born with Osteogenesis Imperfecta (OI). The Light Fund’s donation will facilitate various activities aimed at children living with this rare condition including, at the charity’s annual family conference, a qualified kids club creche facilities/nursery care and ‘Cool Bones’, a space for children aged 11-15.
Bromley Brighter Beginnings - £5,000
Bromley Brighter Beginnings is a small, entirely volunteer-run registered charity which harnesses the power of community to help vulnerable families living in financial hardship across London's largest borough, Bromley. One of the charity’s beliefs is that every child is entitled to a bed of their own and so, in pursuit of that, The Light Fund’s donation will enable beds to be purchased for 17 vulnerable children who previously have not had a bed of their very own, giving them a safe place to dream.
Campaign Against Living Miserably (CALM) - £5,000
One suicide impacts around 135 people. CALM’s helpline answers a call every 59 seconds, from people who are struggling with life. It costs CALM on average £8 to answer one potentially life-saving call via its helpline meaning the £5,000 donation from The Light Fund will help answer 625 calls in the coming year.
Carers Worldwide - £4,860
Carers Worldwide works in Bangladesh, Nepal and India to improve physical, emotional, economic and social wellbeing of informal carers. The Light Fund’s donation will provide funds to equip and run a Community Caring Centre in Kathmandu, Nepal to provide early intervention, therapeutic and educational activities for children with Cerebral Palsy, and to provide respite to their carers.
The Children’s Trust - £5,000
The Children’s Trust is the UK’s leading charity for children with brain injury. The Light Fund’s donation will be used for making improvements to the charity’s Chestnut House building to to make it a home again for the children and young people who have profound and complex health needs due to their acquired brain injury and/or neuro-disability.
Chorley Youth Zone (Inspire) - £5,030
Chorley Youth Zone, named ‘Inspire’ by young people themselves, is an independent local charity, serving the thousands of young people who live in the borough of Chorley, including disabled young people. The Light Fund’s donation will be used to help cover the cost of the lead worker at the charity’s weekly SEND (special educational needs and disabilities) only session to prepare and deliver these sessions.
Crohn’s & Colitis UK - £5,000
Inflammatory Bowel Disease (IBD) affects people of all ages and if you have Crohn’s or Colitis, your body attacks itself - causing the gut to become swollen, inflamed and ulcerated. Without support, people living with IBD can struggle – feeling isolated, lonely and afraid. This is understandable, as complications can be fatal, and there is no known cure. The donation will help fund the charity’s multi-channel Helpline support service in 2023 – to extend an essential lifeline to people affected by Crohn’s and Colitis, including concerned parents, carers, and loved ones.
Cruse Bereavement Support - £4,875
Cruse Bereavement Support’s telephone helpline provides professional support for bereaved people in emotional crisis and distress seven days a week. Calls are answered by its team of 472 specialist trained bereavement volunteers who deliver confidential emotional support and practical advice. The Light Fund grant will enable to charity to host three training courses to train 36 new Helpline volunteers.
Demelza Hospice Care for Children - £4,105
Demelza Hospice Care provides expert clinical and emotional support to children and young people with serious or terminal conditions, and their families, to live the best life they can. Sensory play is incredibly valuable for the young children who access Demelza's services and the grant will help fund Demelza's Little Dots project, which welcomes families who would like to benefit from sensory play into the charity’s Kent Hospice and venues in the community, free of charge.
Golden Lion Children’s Trust - £5,720
GLCT is an independent, voluntary charity that supports disadvantaged young people and children with special needs in Sussex by arranging projects and events that the children would not otherwise necessarily experience. The Light Fund donation will enable the charity to take a group of 12 such young teenagers to enjoy a challenging event day at an activity centre in East Sussex, including coach transport, qualified instruction and refreshments.
Happy Days Children’s Charity - £4,825
Happy Days Children’s Charity provides respite break holidays, residential group activity holidays, day trips and visiting theatre performances for children and young people aged 3-17 with special needs, that are further disadvantaged by living in poor socio-economic conditions. The Light Fund’s donation will be used to fund a residential group trip for 23 young people with special needs aged 15-16 from Lincolnshire to visit London, accompanied by six adult carers.
Helen Arkell Dyslexia Charity - £5,000
The Helen Arkell Dyslexia Charity removes barriers to learning and life for children, young people and adults with dyslexia and other specific learning difficulties. The Light Fund’s donation will be used to offer specialist dyslexia support to children from lower-income families, through The Light Fund Restricted Dyslexia Fund, so everyone can access the support needed regardless of their ability to pay. The donation will provide life-changing support to approximately 14 disadvantaged children with dyslexia, to give them the tools to thrive in life and unlock their full potential.
Hospice of St. Francis - £5,722
To help fund its children’s service that provides pre and post bereavement counselling support for children facing the loss of a parent or other loved one. Every year the service supports between 100-120 children aged 4-18 to cope with this emotional upheaval and help them to find ways to cope with a future without the person they love.
Kidscape - £4,275
Kidscape is a bullying prevention charity working throughout England and Wales. The Light Fund donation will enable 15 state-run schools in Greater Manchester to establish a peer mentoring programme to improve the emotional wellbeing of children and young people by ‘matching’ pupils of a similar age, or with similar interests/experience, with younger pupils in one-to-one non-judgemental relationships, to provide guidance and serve as positive role models.
London Wheelchair Rugby Club - £4,000
New equipment is vital for London Wheelchair Rugby Club and players. The Light Fund donation will ensure the correct and safe equipment for all of the Club’s three teams, such as fitness equipment, weights, timing clocks, score board, cones, rugby balls, whistles, bibs, training board, etc. plus players’ personal equipment like gloves, tape and glue.
Macmillan Cancer Support - £5,000
There are currently 3 million people living with cancer across the UK and this number is expected to reach 4 million by 2030. A cancer diagnosis can have a devastating impact on an individual’s finances. This grant will help Macmillan with its Macmillan Grants programme, which will enable them to help approximately 14 people in need of urgent financial support and help fill a vital gap for people with cancer on low incomes who are among the most financially vulnerable, or who need immediate financial help.
Maggie’s - £5,000
Maggie’s provides a programme of psychological, social and practical support to people with cancer and their loved ones through the charity’s centre. The Light Fund’s donation will
fund the entire year of Eating Well Workshops that will be attended by 120 people, as well as two benefit advisors at its West London centre.
A recent survey revealed that well over a quarter (29%) of people with a cancer diagnosis are more worried about the cost-of-living crisis that their cancer, the benefits advisors will be on hand to help them throughout the winter.
Martin House Children’s Hospice - £5,200
Martin House provides holistic, family-led care for children and young people with life-limiting conditions. Nestled in the Martin House gardens is The Sanctuary, a place of rest, reflection and worship for all, regardless of religious beliefs. The Light Fund’s donation will fund The Sanctuary to be refurbished bringing immeasurable benefits to the men, women and children at Martin House.
Motor Neurone Disease Association - £5,000
A diagnosis of MND is devastating because the disease progresses so rapidly and there is very little time for people to come to terms with what’s happening. The Light Fund’s donation will be used by the charity’s Young Person’s Grants programme to provide grants of up to £250 to children and young people up to the age of 18 who are affected by, living with, or caring for someone with MND. It can also be awarded to children who have recently been bereaved.
MS-UK - £5,000
This funding will enable MS-UK to update eight of the charity’s information booklets. These are an invaluable resource for people diagnosed with MS, as there is so little information given at diagnosis and what people can do to help themselves live well with the condition. These booklets cover a range of subjects including diet and exercise, mindfulness and symptom management and give inspiration and hope to others, knowing they can live a good life with MS. Available online and in print, each year they are read by over 30,000 people.
My Black Dog - £5,300
My Black Dog is an online peer to peer support service for people who are struggling with their mental health with nall volunteers having had a lived experience. The funding will allow for the recruitment and training of 50 new volunteers to support the continued growth of My Black Dog as it is currently operating at full capacity.
New Life Special Babies Units - £5,000
New Life Special Babies Units provides much needed equipment to help sick and premature babies to a better life, and in some circumstances, life itself. The Light Fund donation will see that another ‘hot bed’ (incubator) will be installed in a UK hospital to help those newborns.
Newlife the Charity for Disabled Children - £5,000
Newlife is a national disability charity, supporting children and families across the UK. The Light Fund donation will help fund the charity’s Emergency Equipment Loan service in Greater London which is aimed at helping at least 30 disabled children in crisis in 2023.
NSPCC - £5,000
The Light Fund’s donation will be used to support NSPCC’s nine regional hubs (where the services are dependant on local needs) and support the charity’s national helpline, where adults can get in touch with any concerns they have about a child’s welfare and to speak to an expert in safeguarding.
Orchid - £5,000
Orchid exists to save men’s lives from prostate, testicular and penile cancers. This funding will help Orchid raise awareness of the risk factors, signs and symptoms of prostate, testicular and penile cancer to help avoid late diagnoses with fewer treatment options and a poorer prognosis by funding a Male Cancer Information Roadshow during Orchid’s Male Cancer Awareness Week in September 2023. The primary beneficiaries will be men, but their loved ones will benefit too.
Pancreatic Cancer UK - £5,000
Pancreatic cancer is one of most devastating of cancers, where mortality closely parallels incidence, but pancreatic cancer research receives just 2% of the annual UK cancer budget. With minimal funding, researchers cannot make the breakthroughs required for early diagnosis and effective treatment to become a reality. The Light Fund’s £5,000 donation will fund all the general laboratory consumables required by a specialist department at Bart’s Cancer Institute that is focused on understanding the unique qualities that make pancreatic cancer consistently able to evade therapy.
PTSD Resolution - £5,000
PTSD Resolution provides therapy for the mental welfare of Forces’ veterans, reservists and their families. The charity’s Project 100 has been running for the past year in order to contribute to an analysis by the Office of Veterans’ Affairs of their needs post military service. PTSD Resolution has been collecting the detailed data required and The Light Fund’s donation will pay for an analyst for the data in order to inform future policy.
Read for Good - £5,000
Reading is the single most important way for every man, woman and child to realise their full potential. The Light Fund’s donation will keep a Read for Good mobile bookcase filled with brand new books and a Read for Good storyteller on the wards in a children's hospital.
RCN Foundation - £5,000
The RCN Foundation is an independent charity whose purpose is to support and strengthen nursing and midwifery to improve the health and wellbeing of the public. The Light Fund’s donation will be used for the charity’s Benevolent Service, which provides a grant-making and sign-posting service to nursing and midwifery professionals who are experiencing hardship, to help an additional 10 members of the nursing and midwifery community.
Sands - £5,000
For more than 40 years, Sands has supported anyone affected by pregnancy and baby loss. Sands recently developed a suite of resources for bereaved children which is available to download from its website. The Light Fund’s donation will allow the charity to develop a free interactive physical booklet alongside a soft toy. The toy encourages children to forge memories for years to come and to feel able to include their sibling in family activities and special occasions. This will form a pilot of 500 booklets and complementing toys.
Self-Injury Support - £5,000
Self-Injury Support vision is that anybody who uses self-harm knows they are not alone. The charity is currently undertaking community outreach work with people over 18 from marginalised groups affected by self-harm (especially ethnic minorities, the LGBTQ+ community and disabled people). The Light Fund donation will cover the additional costs of promoting and running of peer-led workshops, co-producing and printing of specialised resources addressing the unique needs of these groups.
ShelterBox - £5,000
ShelterBox is an agile disaster relief charity that has supported over 2 million displaced people around the globe with emergency shelter and lifesaving aid items since it began 20 years ago. This year alone ShelterBox has been working in Ukraine, Pakistan, Burkina Faso, Cameroon, Nigeria, Ethiopia, Mozambique, Syria, and Yemen. The Light Fund’s donation will provide 172 families with shelter kits to help repair and rebuild their homes or provide 111 families with water filters to ensure they can drink clean water in utterly disastrous situations.
Shine Cancer Support - £5,000
Shine is the only UK charity that support adults in their 20s, 30s and 40s who have experienced a cancer diagnosis. The Light Fund donation will help boost the charity’s online support networks and programmes, to reach and connect with young people living with cancer via specifically-targeted support groups in 2023.
The Sick Children’s Trust - £3,000
The aims of The Sick Children’s Trust are to aid the wellbeing and recovery of seriously ill children and support the welfare of their families by keeping them at their sick child's hospital bedside by operating free 'Home from Home' accommodation situated just minutes away from paediatric wards at major hospitals. The Light Fund donation will help fund the urgent bedroom redecoration project at Guilford Street House, supporting Great Ormond Street Hospital.
The Snowdrop Project - £5,000
The charity supports survivors of human trafficking and modern slavery. The donation will help fund its parent and toddler group, which provides free childcare for its clients so that they can access counselling and casework services. Over the next year around 40 parents and 50 children will attend this parent and toddler group.
Speech and Language UK - £5,000
For 1.7 million children in the UK learning to talking and understand words seems like an impossible hurdle. Speech and Language UK wants every child to face the future with confidence. In response to parents/carers needs for bitesize info, video content, resources for older children and better accessibility, The Light Fund’s donation will fund development of additional webinars and webcasts to benefit 340-600 parents.
Spread A Smile - £5,900
Spread A Smile supports critically and terminally ill children and their families across the UK via visits by its team of entertainers, including magicians, singers, face-painters and therapy dogs to distract from the pain and anxiety of treatment. The Light Fund’s donation will fund 10 hospital visits thereby impacting the lives of 150 children, aged between 0-18, who are facing critical life-saving treatment or end of life care.
St. Christopher’s Trust - £5,000
St Christopher’s provides free-at-the-point-of-use services to improve the quality of life for people living with life-limiting illnesses in Bromley, Croydon, Lambeth, Lewisham, and Southwark. The Light Fund donation will fund specialised bereavement counselling sessions for approximately 20 disadvantaged children in 2023.
Together for Short Lives - £5,000
Together for Short Lives exists to help every child and family living with a life-limiting or life-threatening condition get the very best care and support they can so they can make the most of every moment together. To relieve some of the financial worries these families face, the charity gives hardship grants to recently bereaved families who are struggling financially. The Light Fund’s donation will be distributed to 15 families as grants of £300 each, and the remaining £500 would contribute towards the project's running costs.
Tŷ Hafan - £5,000
Tŷ Hafan is a children’s hospice in Wales and this grant will help Tŷ Hafan to provide respite care for families and children. Some 85% of families using Tŷ Hafan reported that this was their only or primary source of respite, so the need for Tŷ Hafan to continue providing this service is monumental.
Voices of Hope - £5,000
Voices of Hope was established to help restore and rebuild hope in disadvantaged individuals. The charity has created BRITE Box weekly family recipe meal kits - aiming to tackle food insecurity and encouraging children and their families to cook, bringing families together around food in the home. The Light Fund’s donation will provide funding to provide a 12 week pilot of BRITE Box in Hounslow for 35 families.
We Reach UK - £5,000
The Light Fund’s donation will support the We Reach 2023 Wash project providing water, sanitation and hygiene (WASH) training and education to nine primary schools in Kakamega County in Western Kenya. This will reach some 18,000 students where students are at risk of waterborne diseases, such as diarrhoea, cholera, dysentery and typhoid and a lack of menstrual hygiene management (MHM) facilities means that girls are stigmatised and experience isolation from other pupils.
Whizz-Kidz - £5,000
This grant will enable us to help provide young wheelchair users on the charity’s waiting list with vital, bespoke mobility equipment. A donation of £5,000 will, for example, help to cover the cost of providing a manual wheelchair for a disabled child, which is comfortable, well-fitting and lightweight, meaning they are able to self-propel without getting too tired, and don’t have to rely on someone to push them around.
Winston’s Wish - £5,000
Winston's Wish provides one-off and ongoing bereavement support to children and young people up to the age of 25, as well as support to their parents and carers. The grant will be used for a new project which will provide instant support and guidance to grieving children and young people via a Live Chat service - a free, open access service for anyone looking for advice or support on coping with childhood grief.
World Child Cancer - £4,950
World Child Cancer would like to do more to enable children with cancer to understand their diagnosis and treatment and this grant will help specifically towards developing a new resource for children in partner hospitals in Cameroon. The Light Fund donation will enable the charity’s Xploro app, which is already successfully educating and guiding children with cancer in the UK to be adapted for use in Cameroon.
Youth Adventure Trust - £4,120
Youth Adventure Trust supports vulnerable young people aged 11-16 who live in Swindon and Wiltshire. The donations will help fund the charity’s Pathway Days, which are activity days for young people aged 13-14 and in the final academic year of its Youth Adventure Programme. Around 80 young people will be attending four Pathway Days, in October, February, April and July. The Pathway Days, along with the Mentoring Scheme, form part of the charity’s end-of-programme care.
Other donations made by The Light Fund during the course of 2022
Amy Winehouse Foundation - £2,000
In Amy’s memory, the Foundation works to inspire children and young people to build their self-esteem and resilience, so they can flourish.
Motor Neurone Disease Association - £4,000
In memory of David Hicks (founder of Really Good/Soul), who passed away this year, and other business associates and friends that have passed away due to MND. This will go to further research into this dreadful disease.
RNLI - £71,250
By agreement with our industry’s marvellous Channel swimmers, this grant is to fund the ongoing work of the RNLI, saving lives at sea.
ShelterBox Pakistan Appeal - £5,000
Following catastrophic flooding in Pakistan this year, this donation helped provide over 8,400 displaced men, women and children in Sindh province, Pakistan, with tents, water filters, mosquito nets, blankets, and mattresses.
Ukraine DEC Appeal - £8,000
To provide aid for Ukrainian children displaced and traumatised following the invasion of Ukraine by Russia.
2022 Total Donations: £356,242
The ADD-Vance ADHD and Autism Trust - £4,185
ADD-vance is passionate about understanding, embracing and celebrating neurodiversity. The beneficiaries of the funding will be the families of neurodivergent children. ADD-vance support groups are age or topic specific and are facilitated by specialists. The Light Fund’s donation will be used to run weekly support groups for parents and carers of neurodiverse children across the county of Hertfordshire, either face to face or online.
Annie Mawson’s Sunbeams Music Trust - £5,000
Annie Mawson’s Sunbeams delivers community music therapy to over 2,000 disadvantaged and disabled children and adults throughout Cumbria. The Light Fund donation will enable the delivery of Digital Sunbeams – when four specialist musicians will help 42 disadvantaged and disenfranchised young people improve their quality of life, self-esteem, emotional and mental health through the creative freedom of music via Zoom technology.
Barons Court Project - £5,175
Barons Court Project is a day centre for people who are homeless and those living with mental health difficulties on a low income. One of the ways by which the charity supports its guests is through its Home(less) Made social enterprise initiative where guests create designs for t-shirts, greeting cards, tote bags etc., which are then sold via the organisation’s website and on market stalls. The Light Fund’s donations will cover the salary costs of its Social Enterprise Manager for four months to run this project.
Berkshire MS Therapy Centre - £5,400
The Berkshire MS Therapy Centre supports the health and wellbeing of people living with Multiple Sclerosis across Berkshire and some areas of Oxfordshire, Hampshire and Surrey.
Following members’ feedback, the charity wants to create online resources helping its MS members to exercise at home and The Light Fund’s grant will allow for the creation of six advisory films with a professional videographer.
Birth Trauma Association - £4,800
The Birth Trauma Association (BTA) is a UK charity largely run by volunteers. It is principally a mental health charity, supporting parents (mostly, but not exclusively, mothers) experiencing psychological distress as a result of traumatic birth. The Light Fund donation will enable the charity’s very old and clunky website to be updated thereby raise awareness of its activities for those who need it.
Bowel Cancer UK - £4,550
The Light Fund’s donation will help to fund the design and print costs of the ‘Treating advanced bowel cancer’ health information resource which is due for a review in 2023. Aimed at patients, it provides an overview of advanced bowel cancer, ie when it has spread from the bowel to other parts of the body. It will also be helpful for family and friends of people affected by advanced bowel cancer who will be better informed about their loved one’s illness.
The Brain Tumour Charity - £5,000
To create Paediatric Information booklets – offering the charity’s parent community a tangible, informative and supportive resource, when their child receives a brain tumour diagnosis. These booklets can also be used by Health Care professionals, to be able to offer a holistic approach to supporting the entire family through a brain tumour diagnosis.
Breast Cancer Now - £5,000
The Light Fund’s donation with further support the charity’s specialist Helpline and Ask Our Nurses service. Both are free support services that allows Breast Cancer Now to be there for anyone affected by breast cancer. Callers include people who are concerned about a breast change, people waiting for test results, women facing treatment choices (such as whether to have chemotherapy), people who have recently been diagnosed with secondary breast cancer, and friends, relatives, partners and children of people with breast cancer.
Brittle Bone Society - £5,000
The Brittle Bone Society is the sole organisation set up to address the needs of people born with Osteogenesis Imperfecta (OI). The Light Fund’s donation will facilitate various activities aimed at children living with this rare condition including, at the charity’s annual family conference, a qualified kids club creche facilities/nursery care and ‘Cool Bones’, a space for children aged 11-15.
Bromley Brighter Beginnings - £5,000
Bromley Brighter Beginnings is a small, entirely volunteer-run registered charity which harnesses the power of community to help vulnerable families living in financial hardship across London's largest borough, Bromley. One of the charity’s beliefs is that every child is entitled to a bed of their own and so, in pursuit of that, The Light Fund’s donation will enable beds to be purchased for 17 vulnerable children who previously have not had a bed of their very own, giving them a safe place to dream.
Campaign Against Living Miserably (CALM) - £5,000
One suicide impacts around 135 people. CALM’s helpline answers a call every 59 seconds, from people who are struggling with life. It costs CALM on average £8 to answer one potentially life-saving call via its helpline meaning the £5,000 donation from The Light Fund will help answer 625 calls in the coming year.
Carers Worldwide - £4,860
Carers Worldwide works in Bangladesh, Nepal and India to improve physical, emotional, economic and social wellbeing of informal carers. The Light Fund’s donation will provide funds to equip and run a Community Caring Centre in Kathmandu, Nepal to provide early intervention, therapeutic and educational activities for children with Cerebral Palsy, and to provide respite to their carers.
The Children’s Trust - £5,000
The Children’s Trust is the UK’s leading charity for children with brain injury. The Light Fund’s donation will be used for making improvements to the charity’s Chestnut House building to to make it a home again for the children and young people who have profound and complex health needs due to their acquired brain injury and/or neuro-disability.
Chorley Youth Zone (Inspire) - £5,030
Chorley Youth Zone, named ‘Inspire’ by young people themselves, is an independent local charity, serving the thousands of young people who live in the borough of Chorley, including disabled young people. The Light Fund’s donation will be used to help cover the cost of the lead worker at the charity’s weekly SEND (special educational needs and disabilities) only session to prepare and deliver these sessions.
Crohn’s & Colitis UK - £5,000
Inflammatory Bowel Disease (IBD) affects people of all ages and if you have Crohn’s or Colitis, your body attacks itself - causing the gut to become swollen, inflamed and ulcerated. Without support, people living with IBD can struggle – feeling isolated, lonely and afraid. This is understandable, as complications can be fatal, and there is no known cure. The donation will help fund the charity’s multi-channel Helpline support service in 2023 – to extend an essential lifeline to people affected by Crohn’s and Colitis, including concerned parents, carers, and loved ones.
Cruse Bereavement Support - £4,875
Cruse Bereavement Support’s telephone helpline provides professional support for bereaved people in emotional crisis and distress seven days a week. Calls are answered by its team of 472 specialist trained bereavement volunteers who deliver confidential emotional support and practical advice. The Light Fund grant will enable to charity to host three training courses to train 36 new Helpline volunteers.
Demelza Hospice Care for Children - £4,105
Demelza Hospice Care provides expert clinical and emotional support to children and young people with serious or terminal conditions, and their families, to live the best life they can. Sensory play is incredibly valuable for the young children who access Demelza's services and the grant will help fund Demelza's Little Dots project, which welcomes families who would like to benefit from sensory play into the charity’s Kent Hospice and venues in the community, free of charge.
Golden Lion Children’s Trust - £5,720
GLCT is an independent, voluntary charity that supports disadvantaged young people and children with special needs in Sussex by arranging projects and events that the children would not otherwise necessarily experience. The Light Fund donation will enable the charity to take a group of 12 such young teenagers to enjoy a challenging event day at an activity centre in East Sussex, including coach transport, qualified instruction and refreshments.
Happy Days Children’s Charity - £4,825
Happy Days Children’s Charity provides respite break holidays, residential group activity holidays, day trips and visiting theatre performances for children and young people aged 3-17 with special needs, that are further disadvantaged by living in poor socio-economic conditions. The Light Fund’s donation will be used to fund a residential group trip for 23 young people with special needs aged 15-16 from Lincolnshire to visit London, accompanied by six adult carers.
Helen Arkell Dyslexia Charity - £5,000
The Helen Arkell Dyslexia Charity removes barriers to learning and life for children, young people and adults with dyslexia and other specific learning difficulties. The Light Fund’s donation will be used to offer specialist dyslexia support to children from lower-income families, through The Light Fund Restricted Dyslexia Fund, so everyone can access the support needed regardless of their ability to pay. The donation will provide life-changing support to approximately 14 disadvantaged children with dyslexia, to give them the tools to thrive in life and unlock their full potential.
Hospice of St. Francis - £5,722
To help fund its children’s service that provides pre and post bereavement counselling support for children facing the loss of a parent or other loved one. Every year the service supports between 100-120 children aged 4-18 to cope with this emotional upheaval and help them to find ways to cope with a future without the person they love.
Kidscape - £4,275
Kidscape is a bullying prevention charity working throughout England and Wales. The Light Fund donation will enable 15 state-run schools in Greater Manchester to establish a peer mentoring programme to improve the emotional wellbeing of children and young people by ‘matching’ pupils of a similar age, or with similar interests/experience, with younger pupils in one-to-one non-judgemental relationships, to provide guidance and serve as positive role models.
London Wheelchair Rugby Club - £4,000
New equipment is vital for London Wheelchair Rugby Club and players. The Light Fund donation will ensure the correct and safe equipment for all of the Club’s three teams, such as fitness equipment, weights, timing clocks, score board, cones, rugby balls, whistles, bibs, training board, etc. plus players’ personal equipment like gloves, tape and glue.
Macmillan Cancer Support - £5,000
There are currently 3 million people living with cancer across the UK and this number is expected to reach 4 million by 2030. A cancer diagnosis can have a devastating impact on an individual’s finances. This grant will help Macmillan with its Macmillan Grants programme, which will enable them to help approximately 14 people in need of urgent financial support and help fill a vital gap for people with cancer on low incomes who are among the most financially vulnerable, or who need immediate financial help.
Maggie’s - £5,000
Maggie’s provides a programme of psychological, social and practical support to people with cancer and their loved ones through the charity’s centre. The Light Fund’s donation will
fund the entire year of Eating Well Workshops that will be attended by 120 people, as well as two benefit advisors at its West London centre.
A recent survey revealed that well over a quarter (29%) of people with a cancer diagnosis are more worried about the cost-of-living crisis that their cancer, the benefits advisors will be on hand to help them throughout the winter.
Martin House Children’s Hospice - £5,200
Martin House provides holistic, family-led care for children and young people with life-limiting conditions. Nestled in the Martin House gardens is The Sanctuary, a place of rest, reflection and worship for all, regardless of religious beliefs. The Light Fund’s donation will fund The Sanctuary to be refurbished bringing immeasurable benefits to the men, women and children at Martin House.
Motor Neurone Disease Association - £5,000
A diagnosis of MND is devastating because the disease progresses so rapidly and there is very little time for people to come to terms with what’s happening. The Light Fund’s donation will be used by the charity’s Young Person’s Grants programme to provide grants of up to £250 to children and young people up to the age of 18 who are affected by, living with, or caring for someone with MND. It can also be awarded to children who have recently been bereaved.
MS-UK - £5,000
This funding will enable MS-UK to update eight of the charity’s information booklets. These are an invaluable resource for people diagnosed with MS, as there is so little information given at diagnosis and what people can do to help themselves live well with the condition. These booklets cover a range of subjects including diet and exercise, mindfulness and symptom management and give inspiration and hope to others, knowing they can live a good life with MS. Available online and in print, each year they are read by over 30,000 people.
My Black Dog - £5,300
My Black Dog is an online peer to peer support service for people who are struggling with their mental health with nall volunteers having had a lived experience. The funding will allow for the recruitment and training of 50 new volunteers to support the continued growth of My Black Dog as it is currently operating at full capacity.
New Life Special Babies Units - £5,000
New Life Special Babies Units provides much needed equipment to help sick and premature babies to a better life, and in some circumstances, life itself. The Light Fund donation will see that another ‘hot bed’ (incubator) will be installed in a UK hospital to help those newborns.
Newlife the Charity for Disabled Children - £5,000
Newlife is a national disability charity, supporting children and families across the UK. The Light Fund donation will help fund the charity’s Emergency Equipment Loan service in Greater London which is aimed at helping at least 30 disabled children in crisis in 2023.
NSPCC - £5,000
The Light Fund’s donation will be used to support NSPCC’s nine regional hubs (where the services are dependant on local needs) and support the charity’s national helpline, where adults can get in touch with any concerns they have about a child’s welfare and to speak to an expert in safeguarding.
Orchid - £5,000
Orchid exists to save men’s lives from prostate, testicular and penile cancers. This funding will help Orchid raise awareness of the risk factors, signs and symptoms of prostate, testicular and penile cancer to help avoid late diagnoses with fewer treatment options and a poorer prognosis by funding a Male Cancer Information Roadshow during Orchid’s Male Cancer Awareness Week in September 2023. The primary beneficiaries will be men, but their loved ones will benefit too.
Pancreatic Cancer UK - £5,000
Pancreatic cancer is one of most devastating of cancers, where mortality closely parallels incidence, but pancreatic cancer research receives just 2% of the annual UK cancer budget. With minimal funding, researchers cannot make the breakthroughs required for early diagnosis and effective treatment to become a reality. The Light Fund’s £5,000 donation will fund all the general laboratory consumables required by a specialist department at Bart’s Cancer Institute that is focused on understanding the unique qualities that make pancreatic cancer consistently able to evade therapy.
PTSD Resolution - £5,000
PTSD Resolution provides therapy for the mental welfare of Forces’ veterans, reservists and their families. The charity’s Project 100 has been running for the past year in order to contribute to an analysis by the Office of Veterans’ Affairs of their needs post military service. PTSD Resolution has been collecting the detailed data required and The Light Fund’s donation will pay for an analyst for the data in order to inform future policy.
Read for Good - £5,000
Reading is the single most important way for every man, woman and child to realise their full potential. The Light Fund’s donation will keep a Read for Good mobile bookcase filled with brand new books and a Read for Good storyteller on the wards in a children's hospital.
RCN Foundation - £5,000
The RCN Foundation is an independent charity whose purpose is to support and strengthen nursing and midwifery to improve the health and wellbeing of the public. The Light Fund’s donation will be used for the charity’s Benevolent Service, which provides a grant-making and sign-posting service to nursing and midwifery professionals who are experiencing hardship, to help an additional 10 members of the nursing and midwifery community.
Sands - £5,000
For more than 40 years, Sands has supported anyone affected by pregnancy and baby loss. Sands recently developed a suite of resources for bereaved children which is available to download from its website. The Light Fund’s donation will allow the charity to develop a free interactive physical booklet alongside a soft toy. The toy encourages children to forge memories for years to come and to feel able to include their sibling in family activities and special occasions. This will form a pilot of 500 booklets and complementing toys.
Self-Injury Support - £5,000
Self-Injury Support vision is that anybody who uses self-harm knows they are not alone. The charity is currently undertaking community outreach work with people over 18 from marginalised groups affected by self-harm (especially ethnic minorities, the LGBTQ+ community and disabled people). The Light Fund donation will cover the additional costs of promoting and running of peer-led workshops, co-producing and printing of specialised resources addressing the unique needs of these groups.
ShelterBox - £5,000
ShelterBox is an agile disaster relief charity that has supported over 2 million displaced people around the globe with emergency shelter and lifesaving aid items since it began 20 years ago. This year alone ShelterBox has been working in Ukraine, Pakistan, Burkina Faso, Cameroon, Nigeria, Ethiopia, Mozambique, Syria, and Yemen. The Light Fund’s donation will provide 172 families with shelter kits to help repair and rebuild their homes or provide 111 families with water filters to ensure they can drink clean water in utterly disastrous situations.
Shine Cancer Support - £5,000
Shine is the only UK charity that support adults in their 20s, 30s and 40s who have experienced a cancer diagnosis. The Light Fund donation will help boost the charity’s online support networks and programmes, to reach and connect with young people living with cancer via specifically-targeted support groups in 2023.
The Sick Children’s Trust - £3,000
The aims of The Sick Children’s Trust are to aid the wellbeing and recovery of seriously ill children and support the welfare of their families by keeping them at their sick child's hospital bedside by operating free 'Home from Home' accommodation situated just minutes away from paediatric wards at major hospitals. The Light Fund donation will help fund the urgent bedroom redecoration project at Guilford Street House, supporting Great Ormond Street Hospital.
The Snowdrop Project - £5,000
The charity supports survivors of human trafficking and modern slavery. The donation will help fund its parent and toddler group, which provides free childcare for its clients so that they can access counselling and casework services. Over the next year around 40 parents and 50 children will attend this parent and toddler group.
Speech and Language UK - £5,000
For 1.7 million children in the UK learning to talking and understand words seems like an impossible hurdle. Speech and Language UK wants every child to face the future with confidence. In response to parents/carers needs for bitesize info, video content, resources for older children and better accessibility, The Light Fund’s donation will fund development of additional webinars and webcasts to benefit 340-600 parents.
Spread A Smile - £5,900
Spread A Smile supports critically and terminally ill children and their families across the UK via visits by its team of entertainers, including magicians, singers, face-painters and therapy dogs to distract from the pain and anxiety of treatment. The Light Fund’s donation will fund 10 hospital visits thereby impacting the lives of 150 children, aged between 0-18, who are facing critical life-saving treatment or end of life care.
St. Christopher’s Trust - £5,000
St Christopher’s provides free-at-the-point-of-use services to improve the quality of life for people living with life-limiting illnesses in Bromley, Croydon, Lambeth, Lewisham, and Southwark. The Light Fund donation will fund specialised bereavement counselling sessions for approximately 20 disadvantaged children in 2023.
Together for Short Lives - £5,000
Together for Short Lives exists to help every child and family living with a life-limiting or life-threatening condition get the very best care and support they can so they can make the most of every moment together. To relieve some of the financial worries these families face, the charity gives hardship grants to recently bereaved families who are struggling financially. The Light Fund’s donation will be distributed to 15 families as grants of £300 each, and the remaining £500 would contribute towards the project's running costs.
Tŷ Hafan - £5,000
Tŷ Hafan is a children’s hospice in Wales and this grant will help Tŷ Hafan to provide respite care for families and children. Some 85% of families using Tŷ Hafan reported that this was their only or primary source of respite, so the need for Tŷ Hafan to continue providing this service is monumental.
Voices of Hope - £5,000
Voices of Hope was established to help restore and rebuild hope in disadvantaged individuals. The charity has created BRITE Box weekly family recipe meal kits - aiming to tackle food insecurity and encouraging children and their families to cook, bringing families together around food in the home. The Light Fund’s donation will provide funding to provide a 12 week pilot of BRITE Box in Hounslow for 35 families.
We Reach UK - £5,000
The Light Fund’s donation will support the We Reach 2023 Wash project providing water, sanitation and hygiene (WASH) training and education to nine primary schools in Kakamega County in Western Kenya. This will reach some 18,000 students where students are at risk of waterborne diseases, such as diarrhoea, cholera, dysentery and typhoid and a lack of menstrual hygiene management (MHM) facilities means that girls are stigmatised and experience isolation from other pupils.
Whizz-Kidz - £5,000
This grant will enable us to help provide young wheelchair users on the charity’s waiting list with vital, bespoke mobility equipment. A donation of £5,000 will, for example, help to cover the cost of providing a manual wheelchair for a disabled child, which is comfortable, well-fitting and lightweight, meaning they are able to self-propel without getting too tired, and don’t have to rely on someone to push them around.
Winston’s Wish - £5,000
Winston's Wish provides one-off and ongoing bereavement support to children and young people up to the age of 25, as well as support to their parents and carers. The grant will be used for a new project which will provide instant support and guidance to grieving children and young people via a Live Chat service - a free, open access service for anyone looking for advice or support on coping with childhood grief.
World Child Cancer - £4,950
World Child Cancer would like to do more to enable children with cancer to understand their diagnosis and treatment and this grant will help specifically towards developing a new resource for children in partner hospitals in Cameroon. The Light Fund donation will enable the charity’s Xploro app, which is already successfully educating and guiding children with cancer in the UK to be adapted for use in Cameroon.
Youth Adventure Trust - £4,120
Youth Adventure Trust supports vulnerable young people aged 11-16 who live in Swindon and Wiltshire. The donations will help fund the charity’s Pathway Days, which are activity days for young people aged 13-14 and in the final academic year of its Youth Adventure Programme. Around 80 young people will be attending four Pathway Days, in October, February, April and July. The Pathway Days, along with the Mentoring Scheme, form part of the charity’s end-of-programme care.
Other donations made by The Light Fund during the course of 2022
Amy Winehouse Foundation - £2,000
In Amy’s memory, the Foundation works to inspire children and young people to build their self-esteem and resilience, so they can flourish.
Motor Neurone Disease Association - £4,000
In memory of David Hicks (founder of Really Good/Soul), who passed away this year, and other business associates and friends that have passed away due to MND. This will go to further research into this dreadful disease.
RNLI - £71,250
By agreement with our industry’s marvellous Channel swimmers, this grant is to fund the ongoing work of the RNLI, saving lives at sea.
ShelterBox Pakistan Appeal - £5,000
Following catastrophic flooding in Pakistan this year, this donation helped provide over 8,400 displaced men, women and children in Sindh province, Pakistan, with tents, water filters, mosquito nets, blankets, and mattresses.
Ukraine DEC Appeal - £8,000
To provide aid for Ukrainian children displaced and traumatised following the invasion of Ukraine by Russia.
2022 Total Donations: £356,242