A special evening at Kensington Palace for ACT: Retrospective

The Ella Dawson Foundation was honoured to attend an evening hosted by The Ardonagh Group Community Trust at Kensington Palace, recognising the impact of community-led initiatives across the UK.

Last week, we were invited to a special evening hosted by The Ardonagh Group Community Trust at Kensington Palace, celebrating the many community organisations supported through their funding over the past eight years.

Over the last year, we have supported a remarkable young woman, Alice, through our psychology service, yoga sessions, and group wellbeing workshops. Alice has since become a valued member of our Lived Experience Panel, featured in our Colour Ball film, and continues to play an important role in shaping the direction of the Foundation’s work.

In January, Alice’s sister completed a 100km fundraising challenge, and her father, Andy Neve, kindly nominated our Feel Well (mental health) programme for an Ardonagh grant — which we were fortunate to receive.

We are particularly grateful to Ardonagh for showcasing artwork by Ella Dawson throughout the event in the Orangery at Kensington Palace, alongside stories from other charities and initiatives they have supported.

A highlight of the evening was the opportunity to meet Alice’s parents in person and reflect on the shared efforts that make this work possible.

We are sincerely thankful to The Ardonagh Group for their support in helping us deliver life-changing psychological care for young adults living with cancer and their families.