Hi All,

A few of us from the IPB client service side (and a few non DB colleagues) will be running in the Royal Parks Foundation Half Marathon on Sunday 11th October, taking in the sights of London through Hyde Park, St.James's Park, Green Park and Kensington Gardens.

We will be running on behalf of CLEFT and any donations will be greatly appreciated....a few details from Cleft's website (http://www.cleft.org.uk/) are below

CLEFT is a charity which aims to research the unanswered problems in improving care for children born with cleft lip and palate. They aim to push the boundaries of conventional treatment by funding research into improving operating techniques and by looking at the underlying reasons for cleft deformities. Set up by the North Thames Cleft Lip and Palate Centre, based at London’s Great Ormond Street Hospital for Children and the St. Andrew’s Centre, Broomfield Hospital, Chelmsford, Essex.

Clefts of the lip and palate occur in about 1 in 700 babies in the UK. The figure is higher in Asia and particularly in oriental races.

HOW YOUR MONEY IS SPENT

• 75% of funds raised will promote research into the causes and treatment of cleft lip/palate and related conditions
• 25% will be used to support the team’s overseas activities in Sri Lanka, Bangladesh, Uganda and Ghana
• £250,000 will fund a study of the muscles which lift the palate and stop air from going into the nose during speech, and food during swallowing
• £150,000 will fund a two-year study of the growth of the upper jaw in patients who have had cleft palate repair
• £15,000 will fund a study which may show how we can reduce hearing problems in children with cleft palates
• £40 will pay for a month’s cleaning in a Bangladesh hospital