Join thousands of pupils across the country supporting Cancer Research UK and hold your own Race for Life.
Today, thanks to research, one in two people survive their cancer for ten years or more. But we still have a long way to go. Our ambition is to accelerate progress and see three in four people surviving their cancer by 2034. And we need your school’s help.
It’s completely free to take part and we’ll send you an event kit with everything you’ll need to plan your event and fundraise for life-saving research.
Reasons to race
Whether you’re just one class or the whole school, running 1k or walking 3k, we all have a part to play in supporting the life-saving research that will beat cancer.
It’s very easy to organise – you choose the date, location and distance and you’ll receive an event kit with sponsorship forms, back signs and medals for each of your pupils.
We all have a reason to Race for Life, whether it’s for a loved member of your school or a member of your community. Get your whole school involved in a fantastic cause and bring everyone together to have fun and save lives.
Your event kit
After signing up, you’ll get a free event kit with everything you need to hold your Race for Life, including:
- Fundraising tips and a handy checklist to help you plan your day
- Posters and a fundraising totaliser to decorate your school
- An event day banner and finish line tape
- Sponsorship forms for all pupils to encourage fundraising
- Back signs for all pupils to personalise and share their reasons to Race
- Medals for everyone!
Your school is helping to beat cancer with every pound you raise
£20 could pay for a simple blood test that allows researchers to analyse a patient’s DNA
£50 buys special chemicals called restriction enzymes to cut up the long strands of DNA in our cells
£100 could pay for a patient’s cancer biopsy, where a tiny amount of tumour is removed to be studied in the lab
£200 buys 500 petri dishes for scientists to grow and study cancer cells in
£300 could fund a trial of an improved radiotherapy technique for prostate cancer for 1 day
Find out more about where your money goes here.
Why your fundraising matters
Cancer is smart, but we’re smarter. Here are just some of Cancer Research UK’s highlights from our history of life-saving research and campaigning:
- Over the last 40 years, Cancer Research UK’s work has helped double breast cancer survival in the UK
- We were a key player in the development of radiotherapy, which now benefits more than 130,000 patients every year in the UK
- We helped prove the value of cervical screening, which now prevents thousands of deaths every year
- We helped prove the link between tobacco and cancer, preventing millions of deaths worldwide
- Our research has played a role in developing many of the world’s top cancer drugs
But none of this would be possible without the support and fundraising efforts of people like you.
About Cancer Research UK
Cancer Research UK is the largest charity dedicated to saving lives through research, and we couldn’t do it without fundraising.
Our scientists are working hard to find new ways to prevent, diagnose and treat cancer so that we can help more people survive, and do so with a good quality of life.
- We fund over 4,000 scientists, doctors and nurses
- At our 15 research centres, we work closely with universities, NHS trusts, government, industry and other charities
- Our nurses provide support and information about cancer online and over the phone
- We keep cancer high on the political agenda
Our vision is to bring forward the day when all cancers are cured.
Race for Life is Cancer Research UK’s biggest series of fundraising events and our events take place all over the country. Schools in the UK also have the opportunity to join the fun and raise money for life-saving research by holding their own Race for Life event, with the complete freedom to choose the date, distance and location.
