Announcing our new Fenland Community Cancer Champions project

Cambridgeshire ACRE has been successful in an application to Macmillan Cancer Support for a new project called ‘Fenland Community Cancer Champions’. This will be a three-year project, starting immediately.

The project will support people experiencing cancer (and their carers) in the Fenland area. Fenland was chosen for this project as people living there report poorer experiences during their diagnosis, treatment and after-care than those living elsewhere in the county and are also likely to have poorer outcomes. Cancer screening take-up is also lower in Fenland than elsewhere in the county.

Through this project we will:

  • Employ two new Macmillan Village Agents who will be trained to work to give people experiencing cancer and their carers practical, emotional, and social support at a community level.
  • Help the Macmillan Village Agents to build a good understanding of cancer pathways and the services/support available in Fenland. They will advocate for the services, participating in campaigns and communications to raise awareness.
  • Build on the existing Fenland Community Living Room infrastructure and the volunteering efforts of those that are running them as well as making connections to the rest of the Cambridgeshire ACRE’s Community Hub Network to ensure support between our other Village Agents and staff working with Fenland communities.
  • Work with local volunteers to lead activities for those with cancer to enjoy and socialise together.
  • Recruit new Community Cancer Champions volunteers and train them have the confidence to talk about cancer in their own communities to help those experiencing cancer and to raise awareness of prevention measures, cancer signs and symptoms and the support available.

Rachel Mason will lead this new project in her role as our Community Wellbeing Manager and we have launched recruitment efforts to find two new part-time (21 hour a week) Macmillan Village Agents. More information on these roles is available here.

We are grateful to Macmillan Cancer Support for their trust in us to deliver this exciting and much needed new project.