Get involved and support CLIC Sargent’s campaign

Editor,

The month of September marks Childhood Cancer Awareness Month (CCAM) and CLIC Sargent, the UK’s leading cancer charity for children and young people and their families, is calling on Oldhamers to get behind our campaign to help families with travel costs to and from hospital.

The added costs of repeated hospital trips for cancer treatment drastically impacts family finances.

Our research shows that on average families have to make a 60-mile round trip every time their child needs treatment, a check-up or falls ill suddenly and needs urgent care.

This costs families an average of £180 a month – just in petrol costs – some families tell us they often face counting pennies to make the journey.

We’re petitioning the Government to set up a Young Cancer Patients Travel Fund to ease the financial burden.

In Greater Manchester, 516 children and young people and families are being supported by CLIC Sargent through cancer treatment.

All of these are having to find extra money, on top of every day costs, to ensure their child gets to the vital treatment they need.

People can support CLIC Sargent’s campaign by:

-Buying a gold ribbon pin badge online or your local Morrisons store or JD Wetherspoon.

-Signing our petition online at CLIC Sargent’s website

-Taking part in our Challenge 60 events which are running across the city, or through running your own fundraising events.

For more information about Childhood Cancer Awareness Month and how to get involved, please visit: www.clicsargent.org.uk/ccam

Joe Burns

CLIC Sargent Fundraising and Engagement Manager for Greater Manchester and Lancashire

The views expressed are those of the author of the letter and not those of Oldham Chronicle.