A North Shields charity supporting people affected by cancer has been shortlisted for national funding to complete the transformation of its Nile Street premises, three years after moving in.
Live Well with Cancer is one of four finalists in Certas Energy’s Community Bloom Fund and is hoping to secure one of two £15,000 grants available this year.
Maureen Elliott established the charity in 2019 after a 30-year career as a clinical nurse specialist. She had witnessed first-hand how much practical and emotional support people need at every stage of a cancer diagnosis and wanted to provide this for people in her area. The charity now welcomes hundreds of visitors each year for support groups, creative and movement sessions, and complementary therapies, offering a holistic approach to wellbeing throughout the cancer journey.
If successful, Live Well with Cancer would use the money to renovate the building’s bathrooms and back garden, turning the outdoor space into an accessible area for one-to-one support sessions, as well as installing a proper kitchenette upstairs to replace a makeshift set up with no running water.
Maureen Elliott, Founder and CEO of Live Well with Cancer, said:
“One in two of us will get a cancer diagnosis at some point in our lives, and we want to be there to support as many of those people as we can. In our first year here, we were working in rooms with no heating at all, wrapped in blankets just to get through the day. We’ve come a long way since then, but this fund would allow us to finish our renovations and finally make this the space our community deserves.”
The Community Bloom Fund was set up by Certas Energy in 2025 to help fund grassroots projects making a real difference in their local area, with two £15,000 grants on offer this year for the winning finalists.
Niki Holt, Marketing Director at Certas Energy, said:
“We set up the Community Bloom Fund to support projects that make a real, practical difference in local communities and this project is a perfect example of that. Live Well with Cancer offers something so many families will need at some point, a genuine community around them at one of the hardest times in their lives. A proper kitchen and an accessible outdoor space would mean the team can give every visitor the same level of care, whatever their needs.”
Maureen added:
“We started this charity with £40 from a donation from my grandniece and we’ve grown into an organisation supporting hundreds of people in our area. This funding would let us finish what we started here, giving our community the space they deserve for years to come. We’d love people to get behind us and vote.”
Voting for the Community Bloom Fund winner is now open and closes at midnight on 8th September. To vote for Live Well with Cancer, visit: https://certasenergy.co.uk/community-bloom-fund.
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