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King praises work of childhood cancer charity

Gavin Kermack
BBC News, West Midlands
Elliott Webb
BBC Hereford & Worcester
The Little Princess Trust Four people stand in a line smiling at the camera, one of whom, a woman on the left, who is taking a selfie. She has long brown hair and is wearing a red dress. A man with grey hair, wearing a white shirt and purple- and yellow-striped tie under a grey suit jacket, is standing slightly behind her. He has his arm around a woman with long dark hair, wearing a cream and black dress. On the end is a woman with shoulder-length dark hair who is wearing a navy blue t-shirt.The Little Princess Trust
Penelope Hart-Spencer, Tim Lowe, Kiya Kanani and Andrea Reese represented The Little Princess Trust at the event at Buckingham Palace

The King has praised the work of a charity that helps children who have been diagnosed with cancer.

At a reception held at Buckingham Palace on Thursday, the King told cancer charities they were "ensuring that a cancer diagnosis need never mean facing the future without hope and support".

Among the charities represented was the Hereford-based Little Princess Trust (LPT), which makes real-hair wigs for young patients.

Founding trustee Tim Lowe described it as "a genuine and heartfelt message".

Mr Lowe was one of four attendees from the charity, alongside wig referrals manager Andrea Reese, health play specialist Penelope Hart-Spencer, and Kiya Kanani, a recipient of an LPT wig and ambassador for the charity.

Reuters A huge crowd of people in an ornately-decorated room with what looks like a pipe organ on a balcony. King Charles is in the midst of the crowd with a drink in his hand as he talks to people.Reuters
The event was attended by hundreds of people

Ms Hart-Spencer presented the King with a copy of Anna Loses Her Hair, a book she wrote for children facing cancer treatment.

"King Charles was so complimentary about the work of The Little Princess Trust and the support for children with cancer," she said.

The King is undergoing treatment for cancer after being diagnosed in February last year. Royal sources say he is making positive progress.

Mr Lowe said meeting the King and Queen Camilla at Buckingham Palace was "a fantastic experience".

"We had a chat about Kiya, who was wearing one of our wigs," he said. "I also asked: 'Would you grow your hair to three inches, so you can send us your hair?' which he quite liked."

A woman with dark blonde hair down to her neck stands smiling in front of a theatre-style make-up mirror with lights down each side. She is wearing a white blouse and a grey jacket. A sign above the mirror reads: "These wigs are to crown your courage and bravery."
Wendy Tarplee-Morris founded The Little Princess Trust in 2005 after the death of her daughter Hannah

Wendy Tarplee-Morris MBE, who co-founded LPT in 2005 following the death of her daughter Hannah, praised the King's "lovely words".

"He even spoke about himself as one of the statistics - and it kind of brings that close to home," she said.

"There was a such a wide cross section of individuals there, all forming this amazing community of care that he spoke about.

"As a charity, we were so proud to be able to send four very deserving individuals along."

"Despite the champagne, and canapes, and the palace, it was actually quite an emotional event," added Mr Lowe.

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