Raising funds
The last year has been one of the best years for fundraising in our recent history. We started the year with the ambition of raising £13.9 million, but by raising £18.7 million, we exceeded our target by 35%.
Highlights from the last year
Our first dedicated fund for Myeloma was established by Matthew Wilson and was well supported by the insurance industry leaders, raising £2.7 million (its original target was £500k).
This year, we hosted the first Matthew Wilson Multiple Myeloma Gala at the National History Museum which raised just over £800,000 on the night.
We launched a new Walk of Light event in Birmingham, building on the success of our original Walk of Light fundraising product, where people walk at dusk to remember or show solidarity with someone with blood cancer.
More than 1,000 people took part over the last weekend in March, raising £145,000. We plan to further expand Walk of Light over the next year, learning from the parts that worked best.
We partnered with Omaze on a prize draw to win a house in Cornwall. We had a target of raising £500,000 but raised £1 million by achieving the highest level of media coverage of any Omaze partnership to date. The campaign led to 1,600 new contacts and delivered a significant increase in our public awareness, which reached the highest level since our rebrand.
We launched a legacy marketing programme, including starting a free wills service that has already been used by 992 people.
Standout members of our blood cancer community
Tom Youngs
We worked with former England rugby player Tom Youngs to raise money in memory of his wife, Tiffany, following her tragic death from leukaemia. This has included £50,000 raised through Tom and his brother Ben’s testimonial dinner; Leicester Tigers fitness coach Will Findlay raising £60,000 in Tiffany’s memory with a “250km in 50 hours” challenge; and family friend Will Barratt raising £77,000 by undertaking a Marble Arch to Arc de Triomphe challenge.
Will Findlay
Will completed 250km in 50 hours
As Will ran across the finish line, he did so with Alyssa, the girl whose second chance at life was made possible by Blood Cancer UK-funded research. As Alyssa’s mother watched her running a short distance with Will, she told us that she had never thought she would see her run again.
Discover the rest of our 2022-2023 annual report
An important step on the road to beating blood cancer
- How we delivered on what we said we'd do
- Our new strategy
- Research achievements
- Supporting our community
- Raising funds
- Building the foundations
- Our plans for 2023-2024
You can also download the full report.