GOSH Charity receives £50mn pledge to help fund new children’s cancer centre
Melanie May | 4 July 2022 | News
Great Ormond Street Hospital Children’s Charity (GOSH Charity) has received the £50million pledge of support from the Grayken family, to help build a new Children’s Cancer Centre at the hospital.
The Children’s Cancer Centre will be national resource for children from across the UK and beyond with rare and difficult-to-treat cancers. The charity needs to raise £300mn in its biggest capital appeal to date. Due to start construction in 2023, the Centre will be designed with the needs of children and families at its heart and will bring all aspects of cancer care, from diagnosis to remission, under one roof.
John Grayken, who is Founder and Chairman of private equity firm, Lone Star Funds, and Eilene Davidson Grayken, international theatre producer and founder of Eilene Davidson Productions, have previously made significant donations to a number of good causes both in the US and the UK. The Grayken family also have their own personal connection to GOSH after Eilene’s nephew, Joe Guilliford, was treated at the hospital in 2010 for a twisted bowel.
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The Grayken family have been supporters of GOSH Charity since 2018 after being introduced to the organisation by Dame Rosemary Squire, the former Chair of GOSH Charity’s Tick Tock Club and a Fundraising Patron.
Louise Parkes, Chief Executive at GOSH Charity, said:
“We are completely blown away by this incredible pledge of support from the Grayken family to help build the Children’s Cancer Centre at GOSH.
“No family should ever have to hear that their child has cancer, but sadly, four children in the UK receive that life-changing news every single day. With the hospital already treating more children with cancer than any other hospital in the UK, we believe GOSH is uniquely placed to offer this state-of-the-art centre, which we hope will be national resource for children and their families from across the UK and beyond.
“GOSH Charity needs to raise £300million to fund the Children’s Cancer Centre, so to receive this £50million gift from the Grayken family so early on in our campaign, will be utterly transformative – we couldn’t be more grateful.”
Eilene Davidson Grayken said:
“We are delighted to be supporting GOSH Charity with this £50million gift to help make their vision of a national Children’s Cancer Centre, a reality. Our family has first-hand experience of the hospital’s incredible expertise and care so to be able to give something back to a cause that means so much to us, feels very special.
“Cancer remains the most common cause of death for children aged one to 14 in the UK. The Children’s Cancer Centre has the potential to transform children’s cancer care and we are very proud to be part of this ground-breaking project at the very beginning to help change seriously ill children’s lives both now and in the future. We hope to inspire others to join us on this journey.”
The Children’s Cancer Centre will be GOSH Charity’s biggest capital appeal in its history, and follows others including those for the Mittal Children’s Medical Centre, the Zayed Centre for Research and the Sight and Sound Centre, supported by Premier Inn.
The planning application to build the Children’s Cancer Centre has been submitted to the London Borough of Camden Council for approval, with construction expected to start in 2023.
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About Melanie May
Melanie May is a journalist and copywriter specialising in writing both for and about the charity and marketing services sectors since 2001. She can be reached via thepurplepim.com.