An independent knitwear shop in Brighton has generously given a percentage of its sales to charity, in pursuit of a brain tumour cure.

Laine Made Unique, a small studio shop tucked away in Kemptown, specialises in handmade knitted garments, made from ethically and sustainably sourced materials. In support of Brain Tumour Awareness Week, which runs from Saturday 20^th to Saturday 27^th October, the shop has donated 20% of its hat sales to the Brain Tumour Research charity

Shop owner Claudia has been a keen fundraiser for Brain Tumour Research since she opened the boutique, situated on Saint George’s Road, in January 2018.

Claudia, 26, said: “Throughout the year, I keep aside 10% of all hat sales so that at Christmas I can make one big donation to the charity. For International Brain Tumour Awareness Week, I've decided to increase this to 20% and plan to do the same next year for the charity’s Wear a Hat Day campaign in March. I choose to give a little more from the proceeds during these events because it's a great way of raising awareness and of course more money.”

After studying at the University of Brighton and falling in love with the city, Claudia made the leap from freelance designing to opening her own shop. She also runs fortnightly workshops with Laine Made Unique, where she helps budding knitters take to the craft.

She added: “The more I learnt about brain tumours, the more I wanted to fundraise. The big shock for me was that brain tumours kill more children and adults under the age of 40 than any other cancer, yet historically just 1% of the national spend on cancer research has been allocated to this devastating disease. I'm a firm believer in the domino effect, if you make a change then other people will follow. While the shop is only in its first year, and sales are still modest, I hope that in years to come I can be an even bigger supporter. If all brands chose to donate just a tiny percentage of their profits to charity then imagine what a difference could be made.”

Brain Tumour Research funds sustainable research at Research Centres of Excellence in the UK. It also campaigns for the Government and the larger cancer charities to invest more in research into brain tumours in order to speed up new treatments for patients and, ultimately, to find a cure. The charity is calling for an annual spend of £35m in order to improve survival rates and patient outcomes in line with other cancers such as breast cancer and leukaemia.

Tim Green, Senior Community Fundraising Manager at Brain Tumour Research, said: “We are very grateful for the fantastic support of Laine Made Unique and we hope Claudia inspires the people of Brighton and other businesses to fundraise for this vital cause. Less than 20% of those diagnosed with a brain tumour survive beyond five years compared with an average of 50% across all cancers. We cannot allow this situation to continue.”

To donate to the Brain Tumour Research charity, go to https://www.braintumourresearch.org/donation

For further information, please contact:
Annie Slinn at the Brain Tumour Research charity on 01908 867239 or 07591 206545 or annie.slinn@braintumourresearch.org.

Notes to Editors

Brain Tumour Research is the only national charity in the UK dedicated to raising funds for continuous and sustainable scientific research into brain tumours, and we are a leading voice calling for greater support and action for research into what scientists are calling the last battleground against cancer.

We are building a network of experts in sustainable research at dedicated Centres of Excellence whilst influencing the Government and larger cancer charities to invest more nationally.

We welcome recent funding announcements for research into brain tumours from the UK Government and Cancer Research UK – £65 million pledged over the next five years. However, this potential funding of £13 million a year comes with a catch – money will only be granted to quality research proposals and, due to the historic lack of investment, there may not be enough of these applications that qualify for grants from this pot.

We want research funding parity with breast cancer and leukaemia. We are calling for a £30-35 million investment every year for research into brain tumours in order to fund the basic research groundwork needed to accelerate the translation from laboratory discoveries into clinical trials and fast-track new therapies for this devastating disease.

The Brain Tumour Research charity is a powerful campaigning organisation and represents the voice of the brain tumour community across the UK. We helped establish and provide the ongoing Secretariat for the All Party Parliamentary Group for Brain Tumours (APPGBT). We are supporting the crucial APPGBT 2018 Inquiry into the economic and social impacts of brain tumours and will publish their report in the autumn. We are also a key influencer in the development strategy for the Tessa Jowell Brain Cancer Mission. 

Key statistics on brain tumours:

• Brain tumours are indiscriminate; they can affect anyone at any age
• Brain tumours kill more children and adults under the age of 40 than any other cancer
• Historically, 1% of the national spend on cancer research has been allocated to brain tumours
• In the UK, 16,000 people each year are diagnosed with a brain tumour
• Brain tumours kill more children than leukaemia
• Brain tumours kill more men under 45 than prostate cancer
• Brain tumours kill more women under 35 than breast cancer
• Less than 20% of those diagnosed with a brain tumour survive beyond five years compared with an average of 50% across all cancers

Please quote Brain Tumour Research as the source when using this information. Additional facts and statistics are available from our website. We can also provide case studies and research expertise for the media.