Your Path to Support
Eligibility & Grant Guidance
We understand that a childhood cancer diagnosis turns everything upside down. My Shining Star is here to help ease the financial pressure so families can focus on what matters most. Below you will find everything you need to know about who can apply, how to make a strong application, and how our grants team reaches their decisions.
Who Can Apply
To be considered for a grant, a patient must meet all five of the following criteria.
Under 18
The patient must be under the age of 18 at the time of application.
UK Resident
The patient must be a resident of the United Kingdom.
Cancer Diagnosis
The patient must have a cancer diagnosis or still be affected by cancer, or its treatment.
Savings Under £6,000
The patient (including parent or guardian) must have less than £6,000 in savings.
Low Income or Widened Gap
The family must have a low income, or cancer has significantly widened the gap between income and expenditure.
The Applicant
We aim to help as many qualifying people as possible meet their particular needs. Each applicant plays an important role as a “Gatekeeper” for the grants.
To ensure that the funds are used to help people living with cancer who are most in need of financial support, we request that the application be completed by one of the following:
Direct Family Member
A parent or legal guardian who can speak directly to the day-to-day impact of cancer on the family.
Healthcare Professional
A clinician, social worker, or specialist nurse acting in the child’s best interests who can provide a clinical perspective.
Making a Successful Application
In conjunction with the medical report and financial information, the “supporting information” is a significant part of the application.
The information provided will inform our decision to make a grant and determine the value of the award. The more compelling the case, the more likely the application will be successful.
Your application should explain
The specific needs that have arisen from, or are related to, cancer and/or its treatment.
How the financial help requested will help to address the identified needs.
Helpful tip
It can be useful to include specific information about how the amount of financial support requested has been estimated. For example:
“10 visits by car to St Thomas Hospital (a 30 mile round trip) over a one month period”
How We Decide
We will consider an application whether or not there are other forms of support. In determining a potential grant award, the Grants Team will consider:
Compelling case: The extent to which there is a compelling case about the need for financial support at this time.
Clear connection to cancer: The existence of a clear connection between the impact of cancer and the items or services requested.
Medical corroboration: Whether information in the medical report corroborates the information provided in the supporting explanation.
Prognosis and urgency: The prognosis — there may be urgent, pressing, unmet needs that cannot be met and/or the outlook is poor and quality of life is an issue.
Previous grants: Whether a grant has been made to the patient previously. Unless circumstances have significantly deteriorated, it may not be possible to provide further financial help on more than one occasion, but individual cases will be assessed on their merits.
Reasonable costs: Whether the estimated cost of an item or service is reasonable, and if there is an explanation for costs that seem higher than would generally be expected.
Alternative support: Whether there are statutory resources, family resources, or any other alternative forms of support available.
Financial impact: Whether there has been an impact on the family’s financial situation, whether needs have significantly increased, and if comfort or quality of life is becoming an issue.
Ready to Apply?
Get in touch using the form below and we will guide you through the process.