A CHARITY that supports people affected by cancer has held its first in-person support session since lockdown.

The Pink Place offers free wellbeing support and services to adults affected by cancer, as well as their partners living in Basingstoke and the surrounding areas.

Within days of lockdown being announced in March, the charity were forced to turn all of their sessions online.

But last week, the charity were able to hold their first face-to-face session since March.

They met in War Memorial Park on August 18.

“Many of those whom we support are continuing to shield and are still very anxious to leave the safety of their homes,” said Christine Griffiths, fundraising and events manager.

“However, a small number have felt ready to take the next step and meet socially in a local park. We needed to make our guests feel safe and secure and the guests enjoyed it so much that they would like to do it again. We will continue to listen carefully to those whom we support and aim to adapt our services accordingly.”

Referring to the Zoom sessions set-up during lockdown, Christine adds:

"It was our aim to try to combat the overwhelming feelings of loneliness, anxiety, isolation and fear that those going through cancer were experiencing.

"The Pink Place was providing 'virtual' emotional support, counselling and mindfulness to people affected by cancer.

"We have been facilitating nine different virtual sessions per week for our groups and our Guest Speaker slots have proved extremely popular."