Kits donated to help children of cancer patients talk about their feelings
Children of people living with cancer are set to benefit from special kits designed to help them talk about their feelings thanks to a donation of more than £3,000.
The Royal Wolverhampton NHS Trust Charity has received the cash boost from former Goodyear workers who are members of The Transport And General Workers Union (TGWU) Benevolent Fund.
They fund has met the £3,200 cost of three kits, and for a separate pack – called Pip’s Kit – for families going through palliative care, all of which has been coordinated by Macmillan Cancer Support.
The three different kits are designed to help children of different ages talk about how they feel experiencing a parent living with cancer.
The first, called Hedgehog is for three to five-year-olds, the second, for six to 11-year-olds, is called Tiger and there’s Cancer Cloud for 12-14-year-olds.
For those over 14, kits can be put together along with a support network.
Items included in the packs include playing cards, fridge magnets and little trees with emotions written on them to show people how they are feeling, and books with pointers on how to address the subject of talking about what is happening to their loved one.
Kelly Pritchard, Support and Information Centre Manager for Macmillan, based at New Cross Hospital, is "passionate" about what she does after changing career when her friend Debbie Hindes got breast cancer at age 47 and had a 12-year-old daughter.
She said: “Thank you so much on behalf of Macmillan – this is a dream come true for us to have these children’s kits.
“We all know the devastating effect cancer can have on people, not just the patients but their families too and children can struggle to talk about their emotions. This is the first project of this kind in the country where the kits have been given out free of charge.
“The kits have been put together by Guy’s and St Thomas’ NHS Foundation Trust and everything is evidence based.
"The playing cards helped a girl realise she could ask questions because she was fearful of asking her mum initially, then she became confident of talking about her feelings.”
The kits are available in different languages and have no religious connotations so they can be used by all families. There are also plans to introduce them to those with learning disabilities and dementia.
Cyril Barrett, chairman and trustee of the TGWU Benevolent Fund Charity, said: “We are committed to providing a living legacy for all our ex-employees and we all care about our community.
"Every cause we fund is a collective decision. We identified this fund as one we wanted to work with because there are no words that can describe the impact cancer can have on a family, and so many people have been – and are going – through this.
Leanne Bood, charity development manager, said: “We really appreciate the generosity of the TGWU Benevolent Fund Charity and thank them so much for this donation.
"Macmillan do so much positive work to help the lives of those with cancer and their families, and these kits will really help the children of those patients.”
