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Look super for science – Wear A Hat Day is on Friday 31st March!
One of the UK’s most popular annual fundraisers is back for 2023. Join in, look super for science and help research breakthroughs happen. Our scientists are delighted to be featured in the campaign this time – please join us to make this the best year ever.
Going from strength to strength for over a decade, it is incredible that over this time Wear A Hat Day events have raised more than £2 million to help fund vital research and raise powerful awareness of brain tumours.
It doesn't have to be as sophisticated as a Wear A Hat Day event, you can simply join in on social media by wearing a hat, using #WearAHatDay and making a donation.
Need some inspiration for your event?
Download our brilliant and exciting digital fundraising pack including posters, bunting, quizzes and more to help you make the most of your event! There are also some top tips and ideas for your fundraising event and how best to share on social media with your friends, family and colleagues.
Hattastic merchandise – it's all on our amazing new shop!
Browse our fantastic range of Wear A Hat Day merchandise. There are pink plush hats, bobble hats and companion keyrings, wristbands, car hats and much more!
New for 2023, we’ve added four fabulous pin badges to our collectible range. It’s going to be a historic year with the coronation of King Charles III and the Queen Consort. Our new badges represent four iconic royal periods in English history – Tudor, Stuart, Georgian and Victorian.
All Wear A Hat Day badges – new and previous years’ – are available from our shop. A great opportunity to plug any gaps in a collection, or start a new one!
We’ve also created a unique pair of commemorative crown badges to help mark and celebrate the coronation. A must-have for collectors of royal memorabilia or anyone who loves a fashionable accessory.
Our 2023 limited edition Wear A Hat Day signature brooch is based on a beautiful design by the extraordinary milliner Misa Harada. See all brooches designed over the years here.
Hattastic future – how we’ll use your funds
Thanks to supporters like you taking part in Wear A Hat Day, we’ve been able to develop three Brain Tumour Research Centres of Excellence, making crucial discoveries, providing career-defining opportunities for dozens of young researchers, and pushing the boundaries of knowledge about brain tumours. We’ve made some ground-breaking discoveries already and the tireless work will continue – thanks to you.
In 2023, we will launch a new Research Centre, bringing us one step closer in our mission to establish a network of seven Centres of Excellence across the UK. Funds from Wear A Hat Day will be essential in helping sustain the research here and at our other Centres.
Wear A Hat Day funds are also essential in helping us maximise our campaigning to increase the UK investment in brain tumour research, working with UK Governments and the larger cancer charities, influencing brain tumour research policies at the highest levels.
Hattastic minds – pioneering scientists working tirelessly for a cure
The four scientists who lead our Research Centres are proud to be the stars of this year's Wear A Hat Day campaign.
Professor Silvia Marino leads the pioneering team at our Centre of Excellence at Queen Mary University of London researching glioblastoma (GBM) – the most common type of primary high-grade brain tumour in adults and the deadliest.
Professor Oliver Hanemann heads up our Centre of Excellence in the University of Plymouth, where the team is making ground-breaking progress in its research into low-grade tumours including meningioma – the most common form of adult brain tumours – schwannoma and ependymoma.
Our Centre of Excellence at Imperial College, London encompasses both surgical and research teams across two locations – Charing Cross Hospital and Hammersmith Hospital. Leading consultant neurosurgeon Mr Kevin O’Neill’s team is exploring ways to develop new tools, techniques and procedures in order to continually improve and optimise the complex science of neurosurgery.
Dr Nelofer Syed’s team at our Imperial Research Centre is scrutinising many aspects of brain tumour biology, including how tumour cells get their energy, drug repurposing, how artificial intelligence can help provide greater insights into personalised treatments, and ketogenic diet research.
Pictured left to right: Dr Nelofer Syed, Professor Oliver Hanemann, Professor Silvia Marino and Mr Kevin O'Neill