Candlelighters’ Keith Hardcastle at Buckingham Palace party

Keith Hardcastle from Wigginton is chair of trustees at Candlelighters, and was invited to the royal residence on May 8, along with chief executive Emily Wragg, as nominated guests in recognition of the charity’s work.

Candlelighters is a charity well known for bringing comfort to families affected by childhood cancer across Yorkshire, as well as investing in vital research to save lives and reduce the suffering of children with cancer.

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Keith said: “We were at Buckingham Palace to represent the support we offer to hundreds of children and their families across Yorkshire who are impacted by childhood cancer.

“It also reflected our wider work, including our investment into research which supports children with cancer across the UK and internationally.”

The King in attendance at the Buckingham Palace garden party (Image: Candlelighters)

The events are an opportunity for members of the Royal Family to meet and chat to people from many backgrounds, each of whom has made a significant contribution to their community.

The rest of the Candlelighters team also celebrated the day, hosting parties for children, families and staff, at their Family Support Centre and at Leeds Children's Hospital.

In November last year, The Press reported on the creation of a £1 million Candlelighters Supportive Care Research Centre, in collaboration with the University of York, which will focus on research tackling the potentially life-threatening side effects of cancer treatment for children. 

Keith Hardcastle joined the board of Candlelighters in 2009 and became Chair in June 2020.

His son, Harry, was diagnosed with non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma at the age of three in 2006.