This month, we featured in Tunbridge Wells Business Magazine, where we spoke about our new home and our latest fundraising appeal. Read the full article below.
Cancer charity launches a fundraising appeal as it looks to expand and move into new home
The Pickering Cancer Drop-In Centre is celebrating its 21st birthday this year and – as tradition dictates – is hoping to get its very own ‘key to the door’ with new and larger premises in the heart of Tunbridge Wells.
Named after the late local oncologist, Dr David Pickering, the drop-in centre provides a safe, friendly and homely space for anyone impacted by cancer, as well as their friends and family. It is entirely self-funding, run solely by volunteers and relies on donations to survive.
Last year around 2,500 people turned to Pickering for help and support with therapists providing 1,000 treatments. And at Pickering everything is free of charge.
The charity originally opened its doors at the Homeopathic Hospital in Tunbridge Wells in November 2004 and moved into its current home in Monson Road in July 2007. While that building has provided ‘a warm and cosy hub’ for its visitors since then, now is the time for Pickering to ‘come of age’ and move to a centre that is larger and more suitable to the needs of its visitors, as well as being more accessible.
“We love our current home but, over these past few years, we have really outgrown it,” says Caroline McGibney, Centre Manager. “It would be wonderful to have more space for our visitors and dedicated offices for our team, as well as additional – and more accessible – therapy rooms, so we can offer a wider variety of treatments.”
A new Centre will help the charity to enter its next stage of life on a firm footing. For this to become a reality and for its visitors – and their friends and family – to continue benefiting from the support Pickering provides, the charity has set a goal of raising £150,000 during 2025.
“At 21, now is the right time for us to come of age and make our next move,” says David Bartholomew, Chairman of the Board of Trustees. “The new centre will be paid for, in part, by the sale of our existing Monson Road premises but we need these additional funds to enable Pickering to move into a new centre and transform it into a welcoming home. We are grateful to anyone who feels they can support us with our ‘Key to the Door’ appeal.”
A new centre will enable Pickering to continue supporting visitors like Paul, who said recently: “This place is like a ‘great big cuddle’ when you really need it. And it’s not just the volunteers who support us; talking to other visitors makes a difference too. Everyone here is on their own personal journey but just sharing what we are going through together really helps.”
“We are grateful to anyone who feels they can support us with our ‘Key to the Door’ appeal” – Pickering Cancer Drop-In Centre Chair David Bartholomew
Please support the Pickering Key to the Door Fundraising Campaign: www.justgiving.com/campaign/keytothedoor