Our end-of-year fundraiser has now closed, and I wanted to share some news, and some appreciation.

We didn't reach the transformative £50,000 target we'd set ourselves, but we came close: an impressive £39,742 raised, which is enough to secure the work we're doing and keep building on it.  It has been moving and humbling to see more than 800 people donate to support our work in this way.  Aided by a few generous larger donations, the wide support from so many in our community says much about how this community is valued, and provides a solid foundation for our next phase. 

Looking ahead into 2026, we are pleased to see that courses and events have been booking well, despite the challenges of the present climate. Even though world events can be worrying, the need for support with pain, illness and health conditions is not going away.

One of the privileges of stepping into the role of CEO has been seeing the many words of appreciation from our participants and community. This comment, from our Community of Practice annual survey and shared with the writer's permission, has stayed with me:

"I find myself trying the practices you've taught me rather than just reaching for the pain medication, or going to bed. This has helped me so much, especially during a recent stay in hospital, where I was able to refuse more hard core medication (morphine) and take paracetamol combined with meditation.

I think having this level of control helped me immensely, and made it possible for me to leave hospital earlier than I would have been had I been reliant on morphine."

We've recently completed a second programme of Moving Well sessions for older people living in sheltered housing in Tameside, funded by the Jigsaw Housing Trust.  96% of participants reported more confidence in moving, 84% reported improved mobility, and 88% said they were more active since taking part.  We hope to provide more sessions like these in the year ahead. 

Pictured above: Breathworks Associate Teacher, MJ Stephens, with five women attending the Moving Well course, together with a large check for £9,141.00 from the Jigsaw Foundation 

Behind the scenes, Breathworks' generous volunteer Trustees have been helping us shape a clear strategy for the coming years.  Our focus will be on strengthening our financial resilience, reaching more people who need us, and growing into our identity as a health charity with a strong fundraising arm.

There have been changes in the staff team, with Kinga and Lindsay moving on to new phases and Suzie going onto maternity leave - these would be an alarming loss had we not recruited brilliant new team members in Madeleine and Molly, who bring valuable skills and knowledge of the mindfulness field.

We will also be supporting Vidyamala to continue stepping back from day-to-day involvement, so that she is free to offer her vision and insight — and to connect with people in the way she did when she first launched the Breathworks project, 25 years ago.

Thank you for being part of this with us.

Colin Duff, CEO