Partnership takes breast cancer awareness sessions to county secondary schools
A partnership between a community group and a charity has provided more than 500 Shropshire school pupils with vital information and awareness about breast cancer.
The Seldom Heard Voice forum (SHVF), a local community group, teamed up with the charity 'CoppaFeel!' for the Shropshire project.
The forum, which has promoted breast awareness at a series of community events, highlighted what it described as a "significant gap in breast awareness education within secondary schools", that had been raised by community members.
As a result the founders of the forum designed a pilot project, which was implemented in three schools across the Telford and Wrekin and Shropshire areas - Charlton School, Thomas Telford School, and Unique Care Group in Shrewsbury.
It saw 'CoppaFeel!', the UK’s only youth-focused breast cancer awareness charity, lead a series of interactive talks for students from Years 10 to 12.
The talks covered how to spot signs of breast cancer, how to self-check, and what to do if people notice anything that is not normal for them.
The forum said the project was met with "overwhelming support".
Teaching staff from the participating schools endorsed the session for future implementation, praising its clarity, well-structured format, and age-appropriate content.
Also 95 per cent of students recognised the importance of monthly self-checking to detect early signs of breast cancer.
Blossom Lake, co-founder of the Seldom Heard Voice forum, said they would now look to share the sessions with all secondary schools across the county in the coming year.
She said: "Our forum's core values are to actively listen and drive meaningful change.
"This is only achievable through collaboration, which allows us to make lasting contributions within our community.
"This project exemplifies our commitment to listening, understanding, and taking action.
"The next phase is to offer these sessions to all secondary schools across Telford and Wrekin and Shropshire in the 2026/2027 academic year."
Anna Vickers, headteacher at Charlton School said: “This was a powerful experience for our Y10 students, they left the assembly understanding the warning signs and how to check their chests. We were really proud of their maturity and thank CoppaFeel! for their delivery which was pitched very well and had the students captivated throughout.
"We are also very grateful to SHVF for facilitating and bringing this vital, preventative health session into our school community."
Joanna Flynn, deputy headteacher at Thomas Telford School, said: "The presentation was extremely well received, and we are so grateful the organisers decided to work with us on this important project."
Nadia Chelpa, headteacher of Unique Care Group said: "The delivery was clear, sensitive, and age-appropriate, and it helped raise awareness in a way that felt accessible and meaningful for our students. We are very grateful for the time and care that was put into the session."
Kristie Thacker, CoppaFeel! senior programmes manager said: “You can get breast cancer at any age, but a quarter of young people don’t realise they’re at risk.
"That’s why we’re on a mission to get everyone checking their chest monthly.
"In the talks, we share real stories to empower students to make chest checking a healthy habit for life. We’re thrilled to partner with SHVF and reach more young people with our lifesaving message.”
