Changes to our shops
At Cancer Research UK, every decision we make is guided by one unwavering goal: beating cancer. We’re always looking at ways to make the most of the money we can spend on life-saving cancer research – and that means ensuring every pound we raise works harder for our mission.
Our shops have played a big part in helping us raise money for life-saving research over many years, and we’re so grateful for everything our volunteers and staff do to make that possible.
But things are changing. Running costs are going up and people are shopping differently – which means that many of our shops are not going to be financially sustainable over the next five years. We need to adapt so we can keep making the biggest difference for people affected by cancer.
This means we’ll focus on a smaller number of high-performing shops, grow our network of larger superstores in out-of-town areas and close our online marketplace for pre-loved items. These changes will help us raise around £12.4 million more over the next five years—money that will go directly into life-saving cancer research.
We also hope that by focusing on fewer shops, we can make them even better places to volunteer, work and shop.
The dedication, hard work, and the positive impact volunteers make in our shops, and the community, means a great deal to us. We are truly grateful for the time, energy, and passion all our volunteers give and want to say a heartfelt thank you to everyone who’s been part of our shop teams. We’re here to support you through this change, and we’ll be sharing more information and guidance with everyone affected.
Contact and support
These decisions have been hard to make, and we know this news will be difficult to hear. We’re committed to supporting every team member affected by these changes. Your shop manager is on hand to support you, so if you have questions, please speak to them and ask them to share with you a copy of the letter for shop volunteers, which will provide all the information you need. You can also get in touch with the Volunteering team at volunteering@cancer.org.uk if you have any questions, concerns or need any help.
You can also read our FAQs for further information:
Retail Trust
Don’t forget that you can also access support through the Retail Trust. This includes confidential health and wellbeing support services with personalised tools, a 24-hour helpline, counselling and more. You can contact them through:
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Their 24/7 helpline: 0808 8010808 - quote 'Cancer Research UK'
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Completing a contact request form on their Retail Trust website at www.retailtrust.org.uk
Staying connected
We hope you’ve found your volunteering experience positive and rewarding. We’re keen to hear your thoughts and feedback, so if you’re happy to share your views about your time with us, please complete our short survey.
If you’d like to continue supporting Cancer Research UK, we’d be extremely grateful. To stay informed about our latest news and breakthroughs, future volunteering opportunities and other ways to support our work, we invite you to opt in to receive communications from us. You can update your preferences either by calling 0300 123 3379, emailing preferences@cancer.org.uk or visiting cruk.org/preferences.
If you’d like to explore other ways to support the charity, whether through volunteering elsewhere, fundraising, or spreading awareness, you can also speak to your shop manager, call our Volunteering team on 0300 123 3701 or visit cruk.org/get-involved.