‘Children with cancer can enjoy swimming again thanks to National Lottery-funded dry suits’

The Isabel Baker Foundation has been awarded £10,000 of National Lottery funding to provide specially designed dry suits for children being treated for cancer. It is one of 184 organisations in the South West to be awarded over £6.2 million of National Lottery funding in the past three months.

Vicky Turner set up the charity after tragically losing her own daughter, Isabel, at just one-year-old. It initially covered the funeral expenses for families who had lost a child to illness but soon turned its attention to swimming and dry suits.

Living near the Dorset coast, Vicky knew that many children coping with cancer were missing out on playing in the sea with their friends. She said: “The dry suits allow children to go into the water without getting their intravenous line wet – which could be potentially fatal. It’s important for children’s wellbeing that they are able to continue doing things they love, or try something new, and these suits can help with that. However, they cost £300, which most families can’t afford.”

The money from The National Lottery Community Fund, the largest funder of community activity in the UK, will allow the organisation to buy and gift dry suits to families across the county. It will allow children going through an incredibly difficult time to feel normal again. With the suit, they can go into the sea, play in a paddling pool, or even just have a bath.

Vicky continued: “This funding will make such a big difference to our charity. Before the pandemic, we raised most of our funds through events - so [the pandemic] really hit us hard. Thanks to National Lottery players, the funding is paying for my salary for the year so now I don’t need to worry about that and focus as much time as possible getting dry suits to children.”

Rowan Miller, Head of Funding for the South West at The National Lottery Community Fund, said: “Thanks to National Lottery players, this vital funding will have a huge impact on children and families coping with cancer. This last year has been incredibly challenging for communities, especially those already with health conditions, and it is heartening to see groups like The Isabel Baker Foundation providing respite to families that need it most. As we all look to the future, we’re excited to see how local groups will use this funding to further support their communities to prosper and thrive.”

Dorset isn’t alone in benefiting from National Lottery funding. Today it was announced that nearly £65 million has been distributed to almost 2,000 community organisations across England in the past three months*. National Lottery players raise over £30 million each week for good causes across the UK, helping people and communities to build back from the pandemic, and ultimately prosper and thrive.

The announcement comes shortly after The National Lottery Community Fund released a new report, Putting Communities First, which sets out the impact National Lottery funding has had on communities across the UK over the last five years.

The report shows that, on average, 5.2 million people across the country a year were supported by National Lottery-funded projects, with 97% of grant holders reporting improvements in their participants’ mental health, self-esteem and social contact.

During the pandemic, in 2020 alone, The National Lottery Community Fund distributed almost £1 billion to charities and community organisations across the UK.

The Isabel Baker Foundation is currently running a Christmas Raffle with some amazing prizes which will be drawn on December the 12. All details can be found on the website www.theisabelbakerfoundation.co.uk

To find out more visit www.TNLCommunityFund.org.uk