Will you ‘show up’ to help tackle cancer?
A new movement to tackle high rates of cancer is emerging across South Yorkshire and Bassetlaw.
SYB Shows Up is calling on individuals, organisations and communities to work together to help realise the bold ambitions of a new cancer strategy for the region.
Backed by the South Yorkshire Mayor, Oliver Coppard, SYB Shows Up is making cancer everyone’s business by working with employers in industry, business, local authorities and health, and with children and young people in schools and colleges. among many other partners.
The Mayor said: “Our region has one of the highest rates of cancer in England, with the lowest proportion of people diagnosed at an early stage. I’m simply not prepared to accept those statistics as inevitable or insurmountable. That’s why I’m now leading the development of a cancer strategy that will challenge us to think and act differently.
“Central to that new approach will be our new campaign ‘South Yorkshire and Bassetlaw Shows Up’, urging everyone to play a vital part in that mission.”
Though workshops with employers, researchers, and the education sector, SYB Shows Up is developing approaches to dealing with cancer in the workplace.
In addition to existing staff wellbeing policies and practices in most large organisations, the aim is to encourage more discussion around cancer, to allow time off for testing and treatment, and to support physical activity and returning to work.
And in discussions with teachers, education experts and groups of young people, SYB Shows Up is exploring the development of resources for the classroom and elsewhere, helping to demystify some common myths around cancer and educate them on prevention, staying well and recognising signs and symptoms within their own families and circles of friends.
For the public face of SYB Shows Up, a new website has been launched which will grow to include news, information and resources, highlighting all our joint initiatives and encouraging people to tell their stories and get involved. Some sections are still under construction and awaiting content.
Please visit www.sybshowsup.com or email us mail@sybshowsup.com with details of your projects, initiatives and events that we can help to promote.
Among the movement’s public awareness campaigns will also be a second phase of the Peace of Mind campaign which ran earlier in the year. It focused on some specific cancer types that have low take-up rates for testing and screening and involved adverts across local radio stations and social media with over 100,000 engagements.
The aim is to encourage people to see their GP as early as possible for ‘peace of mind’ if they notice any changes that could be a sign of cancer, and to keep their routine screening appointments, which can save lives.