“Leaving a gift in your Will to Tom’s Trust will help to change the lives of children with brain tumours across the UK. Thank you.”
This Remember A Charity Week (9-15 September) we would like to ask you to consider leaving a gift to Tom’s Trust in your Will. We are so grateful to everyone who chooses to include a gift in their Will to Tom’s Trust. If you choose to do so, you will be helping children and families across the UK, giving them comfort and support in a time of worry and uncertainty. Our vision is for every child to have access to the mental health support that they need, along with their families, after a brain tumour diagnosis. We can only do that with your help.
The work of Tom’s Trust
A child’s brain tumour diagnosis is devastating for the whole family. Around 500 children aged 0-19 are diagnosed with a brain tumour each year. That’s nearly 10 children per week. 62% will be left with life-long disabilities (such as blindness, hearing loss, lost motor-function or learning disabilities).
Tom’s Trust has been helping children and their families facing the devastating diagnosis of a brain tumour with psychological support for over ten years. We now have services in the East, North-East, North-West and Thames Valley, and we help children to reach their full potential, despite their diagnosis. We are there for them, and their families; from diagnosis, through their brutal treatment and as they return to life at home. We are also there for those facing bereavement.
Supporting one child and their family costs us £3,335 per year. This includes one-to-one support, vital cognitive assessments, school liaison reintegration, whole-family support, group work and a detailed plan of how to support each child depending on their needs.
Rebecca Wood, Tom’s Trust CEO, says:
“The biggest challenge for us is funding, we have more ideas that we have the money for at the moment. We want to continue our clinical psychology service and opening new centres is very important, while also looking at how we can improve things nationally and aspects that aren’t being covered by other charities. We really want to fill some of the gaps that exist for our families.”
Why do families need support from Tom’s Trust?
There is a common misconception that children treated for brain tumours make a full recovery. The reality is that a brain tumour is emotionally, physically, and mentally devastating, and for child the impact of their medical treatment can continue to unfold for years afterwards. A brain tumour diagnosis is also traumatic for the whole family and has a huge effect on the long-term wellbeing of everyone involved.
What Tom’s Trust families say about the charity’s support:
-“When my son was first diagnosed with his tumour, my fear of the unknown was so great. I was so worried that I didn’t understand anything about brain tumours, even with a medical team standing in front of me. Once I had the support of Tom’s Trust, I knew I had found something really special. Our clinical psychologist saved us in so many ways.”
-“We cannot put into words how grateful we were for the intervention of Tom’s Trust. Our daughter finally had a dedicated team, with a set of unique skills that were able to support both her and the wider family.”
-“Since our little boy’s surgery, he has suffered with anxiety. He has struggled with his sleep, has a phobia of sickness, has a lot of anxiety around noises and smells as well as travelling to different places. If it wasn’t for our clinical psychologist, we would have had no one to turn to.”
Dr Meghan Owens, Tom’s Trust clinical psychologist at Alder Hey adds:
“A cancer diagnosis doesn’t just affect the child, it is everyone around the child – family, school, extended family, friends. If you are left to navigate this alone, outcomes for families would be very different. If a parent is struggling, they are not at full capacity to support their child. The families whose children who go on to reintegrate well into school and homelife are the ones who will have had good support from the whole oncology team. We believe in prevention rather than cure (wellbeing specific).”
