International Women's Day 2026: Give to Gain
Give to Gain: Women giving back across Cwm Taf Morgannwg
This International Women’s Day, the global theme is Give to Gain. It recognises the power of sharing and when people give their time, experience or support to others, the impact can be far reaching.
Across Cwm Taf Morgannwg, we see this every day through women who choose to give back, often inspired by their own experiences of care.
Through our Cwm Taf Morgannwg NHS Charity, these acts of generosity help fund projects and improvements that enhance patient experience and support recovery beyond what NHS funding alone can provide.
This year, we’re highlighting just a few of the women who are helping to make that difference.
Standing up for young patients
Delyth Evans is a CTM UHB Paediatric Emergency Department Nurse, but she’s also a stand-up comedian. This April, she’s bringing those two worlds together in support of young patients at the Royal Glamorgan Hospital.
Delyth is organising and hosting her own charity comedy night at The Brown Trout in Llantwit Fardre, using her experience on stage to help raise funds for a new sensory room on the Children’s Ward.
The planned space will provide a calmer, more supportive environment for young patients, particularly those who are neurodiverse or have additional learning needs, helping make hospital visits less overwhelming for both children and their families.
The appeal has already raised over £2,000 through staff-led festive fundraising, including a Santa’s Grotto initiative. Through this event, Delyth is building on that momentum and helping turn a shared ambition into something tangible for future patients.
Community giving inspired by experience
Recent community support for the Snowdrop Breast Centre has also been driven by women choosing to give back after their own experiences of care.
At Johnsons Workwear in Treforest, colleagues rallied around Lynda Weaver Jones and Jayne Sainsbury, who have received support from the Snowdrop team over the past 18 months.
Fundraising began with raffles and a tuck shop organised by Maria Locke, and the initiative then grew further when Ceri Richards and Sue Horton took on a head shave in front of colleagues, friends and family.
Together, their combined efforts raised over £6,400 for our CTM NHS Charity in support of the Snowdrop Centre and its patients.
Further support came from the local darts community. Liz Wagstaff, a member of both the Monday night Pontypridd & Area Ladies Darts League and the Valley Ladies Wednesday Night League, helped organise donations after seeing first-hand the impact of Snowdrop’s care.
For Liz and her fellow players, this was deeply personal. After a close friend recently attended the clinic, she shared how much it meant to feel listened to and treated as an individual during a difficult time:
“One of my best friends was at the clinic just a couple of weeks ago and she was so glad of the service and said how marvellous everyone was. She felt really comfortable and that she mattered. It made all the difference, she couldn't praise the team enough.”
Motivated by this experience, the leagues chose to give something back so others could benefit in the same way.
Kindness beyond fundraising
Alongside community fundraising, acts of kindness across CTM continue to make a meaningful difference.
For the past two years, RGH Staff Nurse Katherine Edwards has led her very own Sending Christmas Cheer campaign, a community initiative she created to support individuals and families across Rhondda Cynon Taf and Bridgend who might otherwise go without a gift at Christmas.
Working with organisations including Domestic Abuse RCT, Mothers Matter, Grow Rhondda and services supporting vulnerable adults, Katherine gathers individual gift wishes and turns them into baubles.
CTM colleagues and community members have then been invited to select a bauble and donate the requested gift. Katherine checks each item, wraps it, and personally delivers the gifts back to the partner charities.
All of this is done in her own time and across the past two years, over 400 gifts have been delivered to local charities thanks to her kindness.
Giving that makes a difference
What connects all of these inspirational women is a shared decision to give something back.
Whether through time, lived experience or simple acts of kindness, women across CTM and our communities are helping shape projects that improve environments, support patients and strengthen local families at some of their most challenging moments.
This is where giving makes a real difference.
Share your story
This International Women’s Day, we’d love to hear about the women across Cwm Taf Morgannwg who are giving back through fundraising, support, or acts of kindness.
If you know someone who’s making a real difference, or if you have your own story to share, let us know: ctm.charity@wales.nhs.uk
Together, these stories help inspire future support and show how giving continues to make an impact across our communities.
08/03/2026