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Macmillan CAB Team, Deb Criddle and Ed Murphy at launch
Taunton Citizens Advice Bureau and Macmillan Cancer Support launched a new benefits advice service with guest Deb Criddle, paralympic gold medalist.
The event at Musgrove Park Hospital, on 28 September 2012, showcased the new service and how it can support people with cancer and their families. In the two months the service has been running, it has already accessed over £50,000 in recurring income and one-off grants for people living with cancer in the local area.
Deb, who won team gold and two silvers in the equestrian dressage, officially launched this new service. The event also celebrated Macmillan’s World’s Biggest Coffee Morning at which thousands of people across Somerset raised money to pay for these vital Macmillan services.
Having cancer can be expensive. Nearly all cancer patients suffer some loss of income and/or increased living costs as a direct result of their cancer diagnosis. Many face giving up work as their treatment begins which then faces them with increased heating bills, prescription charges and transport costs.
Liz Fothergill, Chief Officer, Taunton and District CAB said, ‘People affected by cancer need to know that they are receiving all the income which they are entitled to in order to meet the increased costs associated with cancer.
‘However, finding the information and advice needed can be hard for cancer patients when they are feeling unwell and have a busy schedule of treatment and travelling between home and hospital. The new Taunton and District Macmillan CAB Benefits Advice Service will help them to claim all the benefits to which they are entitled and will advise on other issues so that they do not have to worry about the financial impact of their cancer diagnosis.’
One of the key activities for the new Macmillan benefits advisers, currently based at the CAB offices in Taunton, will be providing an outreach appointment service in the Beacon Centre, where they will be based on a Tuesday and Thursday morning.
The service will be available to anyone living, or currently receiving treatment, in Taunton and the surrounding areas, or friends and family who are affected by cancer.
Please call 01823 448960 to talk to one of the Macmillan CAB advisers or speak to the receptionist in the Beacon Centre.
Ed Murphy, Senior Macmillan Development Manager says ‘We are delighted to be able to launch this service, in partnership with the Citizens Advice Bureau. Instead of money worries, cancer patients should be able to focus on getting better. Yet for too many cancer patients and their families, coping with the stress of financial pressure is a harsh reality. That’s why the new Macmillan/Citizen’s Advice Bureau team’s vital support will make a huge difference to the people of Taunton and District who are living with cancer’.
The Macmillan CAB Benefits Advice Service is part of a team of local Macmillan experts supporting people affected by cancer every step of the way. We are only able to fund roles such as this thought the support of everyone who gives their time or helps to raise funds for us. We can all make a difference by working together.