When our Managing Director Leigh Morris was diagnosed with HER2+ breast cancer with liver and bone metastasis last year, she didn’t face it alone. Alongside her rock solid family, loyal friends, her team, and her own extraordinary determination, she had the support of one of the most dedicated cancer charities in the region — Lingen Davies Cancer Support.
As Leigh returns to Riverside Foods, we wanted to take a moment to shine a light on the organisation that helped support her through treatment. Because for anyone living in Shropshire, Telford & Wrekin, or Mid Wales who is facing a cancer diagnosis, Lingen Davies may well be one of the most important organisations they will ever encounter.
What Is Lingen Davies Cancer Support?
Lingen Davies Cancer Fund is the main cancer charity dedicated to supporting the people of Shropshire, Telford & Wrekin, and Mid-Wales as they deal with the impact of cancer on their lives.
It is a local charity in the truest sense; built by the community, for the community. The charity exists to enhance and improve the situation for local cancer patients. We cannot eradicate cancer, but we can make life easier for those who are going through it, or watching loved ones go through it.
For Leigh, and for the tens of thousands of people across the region who have been touched by cancer, that mission is not a tagline but a lifeline.
Where It All Began — A 45-Year History
Lingen Davies was originally launched in 1979 by then Mayor of Shrewsbury Bernard Lingen and local accountant Frank Davies, to build and equip a new radiotherapy department at the Royal Shrewsbury Hospital.
At the time, cancer patients in Shropshire were having to travel as far as Birmingham to access radiotherapy treatment. Previous cancer appeals began to bring a Cobalt Unit to the Royal Shrewsbury Hospital and reduce travel for patients who were travelling to Birmingham. Bernard Lingen and Frank Davies were determined to change that, and they did.
The charity’s first appeal raised £1.25 million to provide a radiotherapy department at the Royal Shrewsbury Hospital. It was a remarkable achievement for a regional charity, and it set the tone for everything that followed.
Founded on 5th June 1979, Lingen Davies Cancer Fund — originally known as the Cobalt Unit Trust Fund — celebrated its 45th anniversary in 2024. In the decades since, the charity has grown to deliver services, equipment, technology, staff, and cancer support to the wider community. Over the years, an entire new Cancer Centre has been created on the site, including state-of-the-art facilities and treatment to benefit cancer patients throughout the community.
Overall, the charity has contributed the equivalent of £18 million in today’s prices to improve cancer services in the local area.
The Scale of Their Impact
The numbers behind Lingen Davies tell a powerful story. Since their establishment, they estimate that more than 100,000 people have had their cancer treatment and care improved as a direct impact of their work and cancer appeals.
In recent years, the charity has raised more than £1,000,000 annually for three consecutive years, with £815,248 spent in 2024 and an additional £176,000 committed for 2025.
That funding translates directly into real, tangible differences for patients. From specialist equipment and technology at the Lingen Davies Cancer Centre at Royal Shrewsbury Hospital, to free-to-access wellbeing activities for people living with and beyond cancer across the region; every pound raised stays local and goes directly to those who need it most.
What They Actually Do — Support That Goes Beyond Treatment
One of the things that sets Lingen Davies apart is that their support doesn’t begin and end in a hospital ward. They understand that a cancer diagnosis affects every part of a person’s life; physically, emotionally, and practically.
The Wellbeing Programme
Funded by Lingen Davies Cancer Support, these free-to-access wellbeing programme activities are open to you wherever you’re at in your cancer journey if you reside in Shropshire, Telford and Wrekin, or Mid Wales. Support is also available for children and other family members, partners, and friends of people living with cancer.
The programme has grown rapidly, with activities including open water swimming, yoga, sound baths, tennis, horticultural programmes, areola and eyebrow tattooing, art and craft sessions, oncology massage, telephone and pen pal befriending, and gentle hiking.
As Grants and Projects Coordinator James Turner explained: the programme provides a relaxed space for people to connect with others who have been through similar experiences — and the comfort of knowing that others truly understand what you’ve been through is something that cannot be replicated elsewhere.
The LiveLife Cancer Awareness Service
The LiveLife Cancer Awareness Service is dedicated to working in the wider community, to reach more people and help them have a greater understanding of cancer. The charity wants everyone to be aware of the simple steps they can take to reduce the chances of getting cancer, to recognise the importance of attending cancer screening invitations, recognise worrying signs and symptoms in their own bodies, and know where to turn for support.
Practical Support for Patients
The charity also funds remarkably practical interventions that make a real difference to daily life during treatment — from cooling caps to help prevent hair loss caused by chemotherapy, to Radar Keys allowing patients access to disabled toilet facilities while out and about, reducing stress and worry about leaving the home. They have also teamed up with local firms of solicitors to offer free legal clinics to cancer patients, allowing them to speak to a professional about legal concerns causing distress or anxiety.
Looking to the Future — The Sunflower Appeal
Lingen Davies is currently undertaking the most ambitious project in its history. The Sunflower Appeal is a £5 million appeal to grow cancer care across the region through the creation of a Lingen Davies Chemotherapy Centre at Telford’s Princess Royal Hospital, which will be up and running by 2029. Combined with the existing chemotherapy services at the Royal Shrewsbury Hospital, this development will double capacity across the region, meaning patients can access the treatment they need, where they need it, quicker.
Currently 37% of patients accessing care in the Lingen Davies Cancer Centre have a Telford postcode. Offering services closer to home for them, and freeing up capacity for others at the Royal Shrewsbury Hospital, will reduce stress and associated worry about lengthy wait times.
It is a fitting next chapter for a charity that has always believed that geography should never be a barrier to getting the best possible cancer care.
A Personal Note From Leigh
I have always said that no one will remember you when you are gone for running one, five or twenty businesses. What people remember is your kindness and compassion, your honesty and integrity, your humour, your selflessness, your empathy and your thoughtfulness. I was not particularly religious per se before my diagnosis, more spiritual. However I have always lived by one simple mantra: do unto others as you would like to be tested. Going through something like this does not change that belief. It just makes it louder.
I wanted to give a special thanks to my stepson Drew Morris also a proud advocate of the Shropshire and Telford NHS team – a qualified dietician who has not only supported me through the last year as a close caring family member but also offering nutritional advice to help support post chemo recovery.
