12Guitars has helped to ensure five guitars are available to patients at the Beatson as part of a new pilot project
A social enterprise has teamed up with a charity to ensure those with cancer can continue to enjoy music.
12Guitars has so far donated and repaired five guitars to the Teenage Cancer Trust that will be used at the Beatson in Glasgow.
12Guitars director Ken Morton said: “12Guitars is delighted to be in a position to support the Teenage Cancer Trust and their ambitions for providing music therapy as a core activity to their young patients. The UK music charity Music for All kindly donated a number of very high-quality guitars to 12Guitars for us to distribute to worthy causes.
"When we approached the Teenage Cancer Trust at The Beatson in Glasgow, we couldn’t have been more welcomed by Julie Cain, the advanced clinical nurse specialist, and her inspirational team. They already had three acoustic guitars in their ward but none were playable, with broken and rusty strings and needing some work. 12Guitars serviced and restrung these guitars with strings from our partner: Rotosound strings. They are now back in the ward ready to play again. This was then followed up with the 12Guitars donation of high-quality electric guitars (received from Music for All) together with suitable amplifiers and equipment.”
The Glasgow-based social enterprise is on a mission to enable young musicians and other people needing a boost by donating free guitars and tuition. Established in 2019, 12Guitars has already created quite an impact with many young people, youth groups and support organisations having donated dozens of guitars and having delivered many great guitar tuition sessions.
Morton continued: “12 Guitars is delighted to have started this pilot scheme at the Teenage Cancer Trust ward at The Beatson and it is our ambition to reach out to all the other Teenage Cancer Trust Wards and outlying support staff in the UK. This is so we can donate further guitars and provide tuition services so all teenagers who are patients will have additional opportunities to participate in music therapy. We have been in discussions with regional operations and partnerships manager; Vanessa Todd at the Teenage Cancer Trust and sincerely thank her for her amazing support to get this programme started.”
