Lubrizol employees thanked after raising more than £20,000 for Macmillan

Lubrizol, which has a UK technical centre at Hazelwood near Duffield, has now donated £20,951.16 to the cancer charity having been raising funds since 2008.

The science company is dedicated to giving back to the community and to charity, supporting a different cause every two years. Macmillan has previously been the company’s chosen charity with £11,300.72 raised between 2015 and 2016.

Lubrizol employees have also been popping the kettle on and putting their baking skills to good use by holding Macmillan’s famous coffee mornings in September each year to raise extra funds which contributed to the mammoth total.

The amount is enough to pay for a Macmillan nurse for 616 hours – around 25 days; take 355 support line calls or provide 104 cancer patients with a grant to help ease the additional financial pressures caused by a diagnosis.

Hannah Lumb-Smith, Macmillan’s relationship fundraising manager, said: “It’s thanks to the dedication and generosity of people and companies like Lubrizol that we can continue to do whatever it takes to support people with cancer and their families.

“This money could pay for a nurse for 616 hours to help people living with cancer and their families receive essential medical, practical and emotional support. These nurses coordinate care services and advise patients on clinical and practical issues.

“Or it could fund our helpline which allows our teams to answer questions about cancer types and treatments or provide clinical, practical, emotional and financial support. We are also there if someone just wants to talk.

“There are also grants available which can be a lifeline for families to help ease the financial pressures that come with a cancer diagnosis, such as increased energy and water bills, cost of travel to and from hospital, home adaptations or pay for a wig for someone who has lost their hair due to the treatment.

“We would like to thank Lubrizol for its continued support. This has helped us to support so many families battling cancer in so many different ways.”

More than three million people are living with cancer in the UK and this figure is set to rise to four million by 2030, according to figures from Macmillan. The charity provides vital cancer services, research and campaigns to achieve better cancer care.

Claire Hollingshurst, from Lubrizol’s charities and communities committee, said: “Our charitable work with Macmillan is very important to us and we are proud of how much we have raised to help the charity continue supporting people with cancer and their families.

“Everyone is affected by cancer in some way – whether they have received a diagnosis or someone close to them has.

“It is charities like Macmillan that are there when patients need them most, offering the professional help and support they need. It is a lifeline for so many families and it is wonderful to see how far this money will go towards helping so many people.

“We will be carrying on holding regular coffee mornings as I know what an important charity Macmillan is within our Lubrizol community.”