Research

In addition to our free wig provision, we fund research into
finding better treatments for childhood cancers.

The Little Princess Trust provides free, real hair wigs to children and young people. But did you know, the charity also funds research for better and kinder treatments into childhood cancers?

Since 2016, we have committed more than £30 million across 141 projects covering a range of childhood cancers.

And we promise we won’t stop funding new treatments and clinical trials until we reach our goal of ensuring that no child dies from cancer. It is an ambitious target but we believe that with the continued backing from our amazing supporters, our aim is achievable.

The Little Princess Trust will also always fulfil its original promise of providing real hair wigs, free of charge, to every child and young person up to the age of 24 who needs one. The focus of the research we fund is closely linked to this pledge and sees us fund studies that not only look for ways to improve a young person's chance of survival but to do so while reducing the side effects from treatment.

The incredible way we can both provide wigs and fund research is only made possible by the phenomenal work of our fantastic fundraisers. The small team at The Little Princess Trust is continually blown away by the staggering sums of money raised by its supporters as well as the tens of thousands of hair donations received each year.

The Little Princess Trust works in partnership with the Children's Cancer and Leukaemia Group (CCLG) to find the most suitable projects and administer our research strategy. CCLG offers LPT expertise and advice in selecting and funding the highest quality research, and administer our grant awards. By working together, we ensure every project we fund is of the highest quality and has the potential to improve outcomes for children while also minimising any duplication of resources so more money is spent directly on research.

Click here to read our Research Strategy

The Little Princess Trust has been funding research into cancers affecting children and young people since 2016. We fund research that will lead to kinder, more targeted, less toxic and more effective treatments for all childhood cancers. Read more in our research Strategy below or click here for the pdf.

Read about all our research projects:

Process & Policy

How research projects are selected

The Little Princess Trust's process of awarding new research grants is based on guidance from the Association of Medical Research Charities (AMRC) and carried out in partnership with CCLG. This provides LPT with a consistent process for all competitive research applications.

At the heart of this process is a rigorous system for peer review, ensuring that all new research funded by LPT has been subject to independent scrutiny by those with relevant expertise (peers). It is the advice of independent experts about the scientific quality of research that informs decisions about which proposals are funded.

The aim of this process is to draw from leading insight from across the paediatric oncology community to help guide the most effective use of LPT's resources to help maximise the impact of funding. This process is administered for LPT in line with our research strategy by CCLG.

The final decision on awarding grants is made by the Trustees of LPT (delegated to the Research Funding Sub-Committee) taking into account the results of peer review and the recommendations of the CCLG Research Advisory Group. You can find out more about this process here. The Little Princess Trust endorses all AMRC regulations, including their position statement supporting research in universities and supporting the use of animals in research.

The MBE for voluntary groups was awarded to The Little Princess Trust by Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth.