£25,000 GLAXOSMITHKLINE IMPACT AWARD FOR THE FRAGILE X SOCIETY

The Fragile X Society, an Essex-based charity dedicated to improving the quality of life for those affected by fragile X syndrome across the UK, has been awarded a prestigious GlaxoSmithKline IMPACT Award worth £25,000.

Watch a video on the work of The Fragile X Society
by clicking on image above (1 min 26 secs).

The annual awards, run in association with the independent health charity the King’s Fund, are in their 11th year and recognise and reward the work of small to medium sized charities that are doing excellent work to improve the health of their communities.

The Fragile X Society is one of ten charities that beat over 400 entrants from across the UK, and its work will be formally recognised at a ceremony in London’s National Gallery on April 29th. At the event an overall winner will be announced who receives an additional £10,000.

Fragile X syndrome is the most common known cause of inherited learning disabilities, affecting around 1 in 3600 boys and 1 in 6000 girls. The syndrome causes learning difficulties, developmental delay, problems with speech and language, and challenging behaviour. In male carriers, fragile X can in later life result in tremor gait ataxia, which is similar to Parkinson’s Disease, and in women who are carriers, may result in early menopause, premature ovarian failure, and social anxiety. The gene that causes fragile X, FMR-1, was discovered in 1991 and the syndrome can be diagnosed by a simple blood test.

Amanda Cherry, Director of The Fragile X Society, commented: “The charity was set up in 1990 by a group of parents whose children had been diagnosed with fragile X. Since then we have grown enormously and now respond to around 2,000 enquiries a year. Winning this GlaxoSmithKline IMPACT Award will ensure that we can continue to offer support and information to our families and improve the quality of life of everyone affected by fragile X.”

Fragile X Society is the only organisation in the UK that supports individuals with the syndrome and their families. It holds four national conferences every year, has 15 volunteer family members across the UK and provides information and support services. It has produced four booklets and has a collection of 120 articles and publications that can be accessed by families, researchers and professionals. The Fragile X Society also works closely with professionals in health services, mental health, general practice, education and social services to raise awareness of the syndrome and ensure the provision of appropriate care and services.

Katie Pinnock, Director of UK Corporate Contributions at GlaxoSmithKline, said: “The energy and commitment shown by The Fragile X Society is remarkable. This parent-led highly committed organisation deserves to be given an award in recognition of the information and support it provides to families affected by fragile X syndrome.”

Niall Dickson, Chief Executive of the King’s Fund, commented: “This is a more common condition than many realise and sadly is much neglected. The Fragile X Society has shown how dedicated volunteers can make a real difference to families struggling with the enormous implications of such a diagnosis. They have also helped raise awareness of the condition and the work at both national and local level has been vital in helping to ensure that families receive the support they need and do not reach crisis point. This organisation is doing an incredible job in dealing with a little-known condition that has a massive impact on those living with it.”

This year, through the IMPACT Awards, GlaxoSmithKline has given £300,000 to community health charities. Ten winning charities receive £25,000, five highly commended are awarded £5,000 and five runners up £3,000. This year also sees the launch of the GSK IMPACT Awards Development Network, run in partnership with the King’s Fund, which provides training workshops for the winning and highly commended charities.

Over the last 11 years, GlaxoSmithKline has recognised 220 community healthcare charities in the UK, with awards totaling more than £2 million. The aim is to support those working at the cutting edge of health care, dealing with some of the most difficult and distressing social issues, and helping to improve the health of communities across the UK.

For more information about The Fragile X Society visit: www.fragilex.org.uk

About GlaxoSmithKline

GlaxoSmithKline (GSK) is one of the world’s leading pharmaceutical and healthcare companies and is committed to improving the quality of human life by enabling people to do more, feel better and live longer. In 2007, GlaxoSmithKline’s community investments were valued at £282 million (the equivalent to almost 4% of pre-tax profits) and targeted health and education programmes in almost 100 countries. GlaxoSmithKline is one off the largest charitable givers in the FTSE 100 .
For more information please visit: www.gsk.com/community

About the King’s Fund

The King’s Fund is an independent charitable foundation working for better health, especially in London. It carries out research, policy analysis and development activities, working on its own, in partnerships, and through funding. It is a major resource to people working in health, offering leadership development programmes; seminars and workshops; publications; information and library services; and conference and meeting facilities.
For more information please visit: http://www.kingsfund.org.uk/

Notes to Editors

About the GlaxoSmithKline IMPACT Awards
The name ‘IMPACT’ derives from the criteria that winners must have demonstrated in their application submissions: Innovation, Management, Partnership, Achievement, Community Focus and Targeting Need.
Enquiries:
Alastair Cartwright
PR for GlaxoSmithKline IMPACT Awards
020 7486 6660
07917 40 30 90
alastair@healthsquared.co.uk