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Great North Run

Want to run?

The Great North Run for OSCAR's Charity

Is the iconic Great North Run on your list for 2027?

The Great North Run is the world’s biggest and best half marathon, with 60,000 runners taking on the route from Newcastle to South Shields each year.

It’s famous for its inclusive atmosphere, unbeatable route-side entertainment and warm Geordie welcome, not to mention the millions of pounds raised each year for worthy causes. Great North Run magic can be hard to understand – until you’ve experienced it for yourself.

We have limited spaces every year, so sign-up as soon as possible to secure yours Great North Run place.

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Great North Run
Kerry Palmer medal at the Great North Run
details for

Great North Run 2027

The 2027 event takes place on the 12th September. We will be applying for 20 places ONLY so sign-up now to make sure your name is at the top of the list to get one! 

It’s such an amazing and inspirational day with lots of money raised, and fantastic to see runners on the course wearing our t-shirts.

We are looking for runners that can promise to raise at least £500 in sponsorship

yorkshire marathon relay
Rosie and OSCARs runners limbering up

Why run for OSCAR's?

OSCAR’s Paediatric Brain Tumour Charity supports children and families facing the devastating impact of a brain tumour diagnosis. We provide emotional support, guidance and practical help; raise awareness of signs and symptoms; and fund research into better outcomes for children.

By taking part in the Great North Run, you’ll be helping to ensure that no child faces this journey alone – and that families have the support they need every step of the way.

By joining our team, you’re not just embarking on a physical challenge but also becoming part of a cause that touches many lives in our community. Together, we can create lasting memories, challenge ourselves, and make a positive difference. So, lace up your running shoes, embrace the excitement, and let’s run with purpose in the Great North Run.

With limited places it is best to

Register your interest today

For more information email our Charity Manager, Phil

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Interested in sponsoring next year's event?

We are looking for a Corporate Sponsor for this year’s event – could that be you and your business?

Contact us today.

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Rachel James

Community Fundraising Assistant
Rachel will join our team on September 1st and will be doing a wide range of tasks including promoting the charity in the local community, developing relationships with different people and organisations, and finding new fundraising opportunities. She comes from a caring background having been a teaching assistant and emotional literacy support assistant in York for many years, and previously leading a community care team. She has also done many years of work in the voluntary sector.

Matthew Taylor

Trustee

Matthew Taylor is Director of the York Health Economics Consortium at the University of York. He has been a supporter of OSCAR’s since its inception and, through his twenty years of research into the measurement of health-related quality of life, Matthew is keenly aware of the huge benefits that new treatments can bring to people living with brain tumours.

Matthew is actively involved in national-level healthcare decision making, having had former roles as the Scientific Director of the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE)’s Economic and Methodological Unit and as a committee member for NICE’s Public Health Advisory Group. He has over fifty peer-reviewed scientific publications, including a chapter in the textbook ‘The Business, Policy and Economics of Neurosurgery’.

Ryan Mathew

Clinical Trustee

Ryan Mathew is an Associate Professor at the University of Leeds and an Honorary Consultant Neurosurgeon at Leeds Teaching Hospitals.

The Hughes Family story had a big impact on Ryan. He first learnt of the charity when he became surgeon to Oscar’s dad, Ian. After a successful surgery, he continued to show great care and concern for the family when Ian became ill again and when Milo, Oscar’s brother, was diagnosed with a brain tumour. Ryan is driven to make life outcomes better for brain tumour patients and their families. His extensive work in both research and surgery is testament to that commitment.

His clinical practice covers the full spectrum of general neurosurgery with a subspecialty in brain tumours. His research focuses on advanced brain tumour models, residual therapy-resistant glioma cell populations, local therapeutic treatments and surgical technologies and devices. He peer-reviews for several journals and grant award committees and has published numerous papers.

More information on Ryan’s work

Lisa Dawson

Trustee

Lisa has been a friend of the Hughes family since 2016 and was honoured to be asked in 2022 to represent OSCAR’s PBTC as Social & Digital Trustee.  Both Lisa and her family have taken part in numerous fundraising events and are dedicated to raising awareness of paediatric brain tumours.  Lisa is a social media content creator, blogger and writer and lives in York with her husband Joe and three children, Ella, Max and Leo.

Alice Beckwith

Trustee

Alice has been involved with OSCAR’s PBTC since 2020. She passionately supports the aims of the charity and believes that if the charity can change one life for the better, then it is a success. Working in the public sector for 18 years, Alice has helped transform Adult and Children’s Social Care Services by ensuring heavy investment in preventative services. This is why the impact OSCAR’s work will have on families is at the forefront of Alice’s motivation to be involved.

As partnerships trustee, Alice is keen to involve businesses, trusts and individuals in the work OSCAR’s does and show them the role they can have in providing the base for the charity to continue to expand its projects to help children with brain tumours.

Sarah Jane Gray

Trustee/Secretary

Sarah has over 20 years of experience in the pharmaceutical and surgical sales sector and is very familiar with the importance of medical advancements for better patient outcomes. She believes research is essential for improving diagnosis, treatment and prognosis for all children with brain tumours and hopes OSCAR’s PBTC can offer much needed funding to help push the boundaries in finding better ways of curing this devastating disease. Sarah’s focus as a treasurer will ensure record-keeping and accounts meet the conditions of the statutory bodies and compliance with regulatory organisations.

Holly Dixon

Trustee

Holly is mother to George, diagnosed with an ATRT brain tumour in 2022, and works as a primary school teacher. She believes that action to support others -however small- can make a massive difference.


She brings real-life experience of what it is like for a parent navigating everyday life, the NHS, the education system, questions from people and a lively young child with different needs.

meet the oscar's team

Sam Marino

Trustee
Sam was Headteacher at a school where Alfie Hutchinson died from an ependymoma brain tumour, at the age of 10. After becoming close with Alfie’s family Sam found OSCAR’s and reached out to the charity to help support the family, staff, children and local community. 
 
Sam understands the immediate and long term effects on a community when losing a child to a brain tumour. 
 
‘After seeing first hand the amazing work that OSCAR’s do, there was no doubt in my mind that I wanted to be part of the team. I’d like to help raise awareness in educational settings, for teachers and for parents – to empower them to seek early detection/diagnosis. Phil once said to me, ‘You never expect to become part of the brain tumour community, then all of a sudden you are.’ What an inspiring and powerful community it is.”

Marie Hughes

ChAIR OF THE BOARD OF TRUSTEES

Marie founded the charity with her husband Ian, who passed away in 2020. She is the mother of four boys. Two of Marie’s sons have died from different types of brain tumours – Oscar who was 9 and Milo who was 5 years old. She is determined to help find better treatments for brain tumours so other children won’t have to go through what her own sons and her family have.

Marie is Chair of the Board of Trustees, working closely withe the team on strategy and vision. Marie lives in Copenhagen with her two other sons, Sebastian and Lucas, and works as a Risk Manager on the Danish railway.