WHT/Macmillan £100,000 Appeal

MACMILLAN grants are another way the 100-year-old charity is helping those affected by cancer.

The grants are one-off payments for adults, young people or children with cancer, to cover a wide range of practical needs.

They can include things such as heating bills, extra clothing, or a much needed break. Every week over 400 people receive a grant from Macmillan Cancer Support.

The charity, which has its Hertfordshire HQ in Welwyn, is a century old this year and is hoping to raise a landmark £100,000 in the county in 2011.

People can apply for a Macmillan grant if they have cancer or are still affected by the illness or treatment and:

■ Their savings amount to no more than £6,000 if they are single, or £8,000 as a couple or family.

■ Their household disposable income is under £100 a week for each person (this means that once you have paid your mortgage or rent, council tax, insurance, child maintenance and water rates, the total amount left – from the combined income of everyone living in the house – is under £100 per person, when divided by the number of people living in the house).

Disability Living Allowance and Attendance Allowance do not count as disposable income.

The criteria are general conditions and Macmillan will take account of individual circumstances.

Some of the typical expenses Macmillan grants help with are fares to and from hospital for treatment, heating bills, washing machines and other household items to help make life easier.

The charity also gives grants for items that help individuals with cancer continue with activities they enjoy.

A spokeswoman said: “We gave a grant to a man with cancer of the larynx to help pay for a special swimming device, so that he could still enjoy swimming after his operation.”

Macmillan hopes continued fundraising will carry on this kind of good work.