Slimmers raise a weighty £10 million by celebrating achievements
Celebrating the weight losses and physical activity achievements of its members has enabled Slimming World to raise a phenomenal £10million for charity partner Cancer Research UK in just five years through three flagship annual campaigns.
The Big Slimming World Clothes Throw celebrates weight loss success by inviting Slimming World members across its 16,000 groups to donate the clothes they have slimmed out of – and they know they won’t need again – to Cancer Research UK shops. The organisation first ran this campaign in 2013 and was thrilled when it raised almost £900,000. Since then it has captured the imagination of members and Consultants alike and raised £3.3 million this year.
For 17 years a Slimming World team of members, staff and Consultants have entered the London Marathon and for the past five years the team has raised money for Cancer Research UK. For many of the runners, before their weight loss even climbing the stairs was a huge struggle. Many never would have dreamed they’d run a 5k distance event, never mind one of the most famous marathons in the world.
Slimming World also supports Cancer Research UK through annual community activity events including Slimming World does Race for Life, which ran for several years, and the new Slimming World does Walk All Over Cancer. These events invited Slimming World members to build up their activity levels together. The support and encouragement of their fellow members in group and the motivation of getting sponsored by family and friends helped many slimmers to use the event as a first step to a more active lifestyle.
Our members have always been, and always will be, at the heart of everything we do at Slimming World, and we really feel our campaigns give them the chance to celebrate how far they’ve come on their weight loss journey while raising money for a cause that we all really care about.”
As well as raising much needed funds, the partnership between Slimming World and Cancer Research UK aims to raise awareness of the fact that keeping to a healthy weight can reduce the risk of 13 different types of cancer.
Jenny Caven, Head of External Affairs at Slimming World, says: We’re absolutely thrilled and so proud to say that our amazing members and Consultants have raised such a phenomenal amount of money for Cancer Research UK in such a short space of time. They have always been, and always will be, at the heart of everything we do at Slimming World, and we really feel our campaigns give them the chance to celebrate how far they’ve come on their weight loss journey while raising money for a cause that we all really care about.”
“Lots of people still don’t know that obesity is the second biggest preventable cause of cancer after smoking. We hope that by supporting people to lose weight and lead healthier lives we can reduce the number of people who develop cancer. We’re so proud of how the funds raised by our members could help to develop new life-saving treatments in the future.”
Caro Evans, Director of Partnerships at Cancer Research UK said: “Year on year Slimming World continues to build on its incredible fundraising efforts, smashing every target in sight. The creativity and team spirit they show on campaigns like The Big Slimming World Clothes Throw, as well as their involvement in Race for Life and Walk All Over Cancer, has drummed up a huge amount of money for our life-saving research”.
Slimming World was founded by Margaret Miles-Bramwell (OBE, FRSA) in 1969. There are now more than 18,000 groups held weekly across the UK and Republic of Ireland via a network of 4,000 community-based Slimming World Consultants, who receive specific training in the role of diet and physical activity in weight management, as well as sophisticated behaviour-change techniques.
Slimming World’s healthy eating plan, Food Optimising, is based on the science of satiety and energy density. Our phased activity programme, Body Magic, eases members into activity until it becomes an intrinsic part of their daily routine. The principles behind Slimming World’s philosophy are based on a deep understanding of the challenges faced by overweight people and a recognition that those who struggle with weight carry a double burden, the weight itself and a burden of guilt and shame about their weight. Slimming World’s programme integrates practical, up-to-date advice with a highly developed support system based on care and compassion, and Consultant training focuses on facilitating behaviour change in a warm and friendly group environment. Consultant training is delivered through the Slimming World Academy. Slimming World also invests in a comprehensive research programme to develop its support for long-term weight management. The group support provided by Slimming World is recognised as effective by the National Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence (NICE) and the NHS.
For more information about Slimming World’s approach visit www.slimmingworld.co.uk or call 0344 897 8000.
For the Press Office please email public.relations@slimmingworld.co.uk