For families living with serious childhood illness, It’s About Time

For families living with serious childhood illness, It’s About Time

Rainbow Trust
For families living with serious childhood illness, It’s About Time image

Date published: 26 November 2019 by Jessica Homer

In the last decade, the number of families being referred to Rainbow Trust and needing our support has doubled. There are now more families than ever struggling to cope when their child is ill.

For these families, It’s About Time. Not just for tests and treatment and care. But for all the things that modern medicine can’t do: time for talking, for listening, for coping.

In a recent survey* of 2000 parents with children aged 18 and under, it was revealed that the majority of respondents – approximately 6 in 10 – said their child being diagnosed with a serious illness was their worst fear. Additionally, of all those surveyed, 65% said that they would have no idea how to cope if this actually happened.

The survey also highlighted that 91% of parents feel that there is not enough time to do everything they would like for their family, with 6 in 10 only managing one hour of quality time with their children a few times per week due to things like work, chores and screen time.

But imagine how much harder this becomes when one of your children is seriously ill.

This is why we have launched our new campaign – It’s About Time – where we are urgently calling on people to pledge their support and join the fight for families coping alone with serious childhood illness.

Broadcaster and Rainbow Trust Ambassador, Gyles Brandreth, says:

“My family’s worst fears became reality when my grandson was diagnosed with an aggressive cancer when he was just 18 months old. Rainbow Trust became like an extra member of the family. Their Family Support Workers give you and your family time: time together, time to spend with your other children, time to breathe, or time to catch up on your sleep, because no one sleeps well beside a child’s bed in hospital. I wholeheartedly back Rainbow Trust’s new campaign because no one understands it more than families who have been in the thick of it and experienced it, like mine.”

Our CEO, Zillah Bingley, says:

“There are more families than ever who have their worlds turned upside down by this news and who struggle to cope. Rainbow Trust wants to be there for every one of them, which is why we are launching It’s About Time to meet the increasing demand for our specialist service. No family should have to go through this alone and It’s About Time we were able to reach every one of them.”

We receive just 1.4% of our funding from local authority grants, making our service totally reliant on the generosity of our supporters, as no family pays for our support.

So, how can you pledge your support to families coping alone right now? Watch and share our new campaign video featuring Annabel Croft, Jill Halfpenny, Katherine Parkinson, Sir Matthew Pinsent and Hugo Taylor. Sign up to receive updates and learn more about how you can get involved. Finally, you can donate today.

*Survey carried out by Atomik Research to coincide with our It’s About Time launch.