A Derby charity which helps families living with cancer to meet their day-to-day costs says that it is the busiest it has ever been, after handing out its 400th grant way ahead of schedule.
Annabel’s Angels has just hit the 400 mark, bringing the total amount of money it has given out to families over the years to a whopping £135,000.
The charity was set up in 2014 and last August handed out its 300th grant, in the midst of the coronavirus and while facing the biggest funding challenges it had ever faced.
Annabel’s Angels trustees (from left) Mick Doody, Rachel Beaumont and Susan Gaskin celebrate the charity having handed out its 400th grant to help a local family living with cancer pay for essential items.
Eight months on, it has now reached its next big milestone, having given out around £30,000 in grants sinch August in order to meet a huge increase in applications.
This compares with the 17 months it took to progress from 200 to 300 grants.
Simon Hancox, chair of Annabel’s Angels, said that the rise in applications was unprecedented in the charity’s history, explaining that the effect of lockdown and furloughing could be forcing more families to seek extra help with living costs.
He also said that it could be due to pent up demand from cancer patients whose treatments were delayed while the NHS dealt with COVID-19 cases but who are now being seen again.
Annabel’s Angels regularly hands out grants of up to £300 to pay for food, fuel, white goods and furniture, but faced a funding crisis last year because the public sporting events through which it gains the majority of its funding, such as the Derby 10 Mile race and the Derby Half Marathon, were cancelled.
It subsequently received money through grants, which allowed it to continue its work and cope with the extra demand that has been placed upon it.
Simon said: “When we reached our 300th grant last year none of us would have thought that we would have hit the 400 mark so soon, which shows you just how tough life for families living with cancer is right now.
“We are very proud to be able to help so many people, especially since everybody connected with the charity is a volunteer and take times out to make a difference alongside their own busy lives.
Annabel’s Angels faced a funding crisis last year because the public sporting events through which it gains the majority of its funding, such as the Derby 10 Mile race and the Derby Half Marathon, were cancelled.
“We have had to be careful ourselves because funds were tight for us too, but we have been very lucky to have been able to receive funding ourselves and it has meant that we have been able to provide a lifeline to so many families going through an incredibly difficult time.”
Annabel’s Angels was set up in memory of Derby mum-of-three Annabel Hancox, who died of secondary breast cancer in 2012 at the age of 40.
After she died, her family discovered that she had built up an online community of friends who she had been supporting as they underwent their own cancer treatment and they decided to set up a charity in her name, in order that her generous spirit would live on.
To find out more about Annabel’s Angels visit www.annabelsangels.co.uk
