Niamh

At just three years old, Niamh was diagnosed with a rare form of blood cancer called Burkitt’s Lymphoma. Back in 2023, her mum, Claire-Marie, told us about the life-saving care that Niamh received at Bristol Children’s Hospital. 

Since Niamh’s treatment ended, she’s been going from strength to strength – but mentally and physically recovering from chemotherapy is a gradual process.  

One of her favourite ways she’s been supported during her recovery is through ‘Make a Move!’, our inclusive sports day for previous and current Bristol Children’s Hospital patients. 

Every year, The Grand Appeal, NHS staff and Team Bath run this event for children who have suffered from cancer and blood disorders. 

With activities like caving, wheelchair basketball and archery on offer, the day shows families how important physical activity is to their child’s recovery. For Niamh, it’s the best day of the year. 

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CLAIRE-MARIE: “When Niamh first attended ‘Make a Move!’ in 2023, it was just a few days before the one-year anniversary of her Stage 4 cancer diagnosis. Emotions were running high. 

While her cancer was in remission and she was making great steps towards recovery at the time, she was still adjusting to post-treatment life. Her mobility was acutely affected, and she was using a wheelchair most days due to ongoing pain and fatigue. She was also struggling emotionally with her need to use mobility equipment. It was having an impact on her engagement with her special interest, which is dancing. 

‘Make a Move!’ inspired Niamh from the very beginning. She heard stories from other children further along in the treatment process who were thriving and enjoying sport. She also met incredibly talented athletes who’ve competed at the Olympics. 

We’ve now been to the event every year since 2023. It has been such a lovely way to see how much progress Niamh is making. In previous years, she’d only ever taken part in the morning sessions, but this year was the first time that Niamh had enough energy for almost the entire day. 

One of Niamh’s proudest achievements was finally learning to ride a bike, which she’s received a lot of support with thanks to an organisation called Cyclists Fighting Cancer. We only found out about this organisation thanks to ‘Make a Move!’, where they had a stall. 

Cyclists Fighting Cancer has promised to provide Niamh with a new bicycle every time she grows out of her current one until she is 18. This is incredibly generous of them, and it’s made Niamh feel like it’s okay to take her time to learn new skills post-treatment. 

Niamh’s highlight every year is the dancing at ‘Make a Move!’. She loves to use all the props and learn from the dancing coordinator, who is so patient and enthusiastic in her teaching style. 

Despite her ongoing care, Niamh now competes throughout the South West in ballet, modern jazz and musical theatre; she’s completed grades in multiple disciplines, including acrobatics and contemporary dance; and she enjoys performing in amateur musical theatre productions. At school, she’s always first in line to join in with exciting opportunities to take part in sports. Recently, she tried trick-scootering!  

Outside of the activities, the highlight of ‘Make a Move!’ for all of us is the people. Every year, the hospital staff always notice how much Niamh is growing or how healthy she is looking. It feels really special to catch up with those doctors and nurses outside of the hospital setting. Seeing them means that the event has become an important part of Niamh’s emotional recovery, as well as her physical recovery. 

We have so much affection for both the people we know from throughout Niamh’s treatment and the representatives from The Grand Appeal who are there running the whole event. There are even stalls from various charities who we now catch up with each time. 

‘Make a Move!’ has also been great for Niamh’s older brothers, who have special needs and disabilities. They benefit hugely from the acceptance and kindness on display at the event. It is one of the few places that we can go without having to worry about whether our whole family can or will be included. 

Children living through serious medical conditions or events are often considered through a lens of deficit. People are always thinking about what is inaccessible, unavailable, too complicated to manage or maybe too risky for them. 

‘Make a Move!’ pushes all of that to one side, says “You can!”, and makes it possible. I think “You can!” is too often followed by “but” or “later” for unwell or recovering children. 

It’s wonderful for those children to have one day on the calendar each year where whatever it is that they need to overcome to participate will have been thought of and prepared for. It means that they can just be a person, in a room full of people just like them, having a “yes” day that could very well inspire many, many more yes days.” 

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‘Make a Move!’ 2026 was made possible thanks to National Lottery players. If your organisation would like to sponsor ‘Make a Move!’ 2027, please get in touch. You can also choose to dedicate your fundraising to supporting our inclusive sports day.