About Us

Who we are

We started out as a group of family and friends, three of whom battled with ovarian and breast cancer. They are still with us in spirit and will remain our inspiration and motivation. As we have grown new property owners, referrers and supporters have joined us,

Why?

In 2011 Angela Sturgeon was diagnosed with ovarian cancer. During her illness Ange campaigned tirelessly, raising over £42,000 for various cancer charities. She loved spending precious time away with family and friends where she could take a break from hospitals, feel normal again and build lasting memories. She wanted to help others do the same, so raised a further £13,000 to set up A Bit of a Break.

Supporters

We couldn’t do it all without the generosity of organisations who have completely bought in to the concept of A Bit of a Break and helped us in many different ways. If you think you could be a supporter, please contact paula@abitofabreak.com for more information.

From the very outset, Carers’ Resource has embraced the concept of A Bit of a Break, helped us get set up and held our hand through our first two years. Since becoming a registered charity in our own right in 2018, Carers’ Resource continues to provide A Bit of a Break with an office space and postal address for referrals. Thank you, Carers’ Resource, for sharing your huge expertise with us and for your ongoing guidance and support.

This Lake District based holiday lettings agency has a collection of 300 cottages to offer in the most sought-after parts of the National Park. The agency has championed A Bit of a Break since 2018 and twelve of its property owners now generously offer the use of their holiday home for our guests’ enjoyment. Some properties are in village centres, others are more remote. Some are dog-friendly, others have ground floor bedrooms which is sometimes important for our guests. Check out our guests’ testimonials to see what these breaks really mean. Thank you, Heart of the Lakes; you are fabulous!

The team

In 2018, A Bit of a Break registered as a Charity with the Charity Commission for England and Wales. Our Trustees, who are all volunteers, are:

Kim Reddyhoff

Kim, now retired, has a background in social work, where she practiced for twenty five plus years, latterly in palliative care.

Paula Hunt

Paula has an NHS/charity background and has more recently worked with her husband running their own holiday cottage business.

Dr Mike Merriman

Mike is the clinical director of Kirkby PCN in Knowsley, Liverpool. As one of Angela Sturgeon’s brothers he is proud to be continuing the family link.

Helen Pilling

Having worked as a Solicitor, Helen spent time in the voluntary and education sectors before returning to the Legal profession.

Chris Wiley

Chris has been CEO of Carers’ Resource for the last six years and has been involved with A Bit Of A Break from the outset.

The Trustees are assisted by:

Rachel Boggs

Rachel joined in 2021 as our Operations Coordinator. Rachel has wide experience across the charities sector and in IT. She works with us part-time and is the best first point of contact.