Many people want to support charities which do not go against their pro-life values. This updated guide has been prepared to help you in deciding which charities you would like to support.
The Traffic Light Guide includes only the stated or known stance and activities of the charities listed. The following ranking system is used to score the charities:
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Brain Tumour Charity
Amber
In a letter dated 21/12/2018, the Chief Scientific Officer of this charity stated: “I can confirm that we do not support any such research within our current portfolio …I find it difficult to identify any aspect of the work that we support where human embryo experimentation would add benefits over alternative approaches.” [#AMRC#]
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Brain Tumour Research
Amber
In a letter dated 25/01/2019, this charity stated: “We can reassure you that we do not fund any research on human embryos”. [#AMRC#]
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Breast Cancer Care
Green
In a letter dated 24/6/2019, this charity stated: “Breast Cancer Care and Now do not currently fund any projects that require the use of human embryos, or human embryonic stem cells.
“Overall, having been finding ground-breaking research into breast cancer for over 25 years, both at Breast Cancer Care and Now and its legacy charities, we haven’t received any research applications proposing the use of human embryos or human embryonic stem cells, and we don’t expect this to change.” -
Breast Cancer Haven
Green
In a letter dated 6/6/2019, the Clinical and Research Director of this charity stated: “I can confirm that our work is not involved in any way in {research using human embryos}. Our work is focused purely on the provision of emotional, physical and practical support to anyone affected by breast cancer.”
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Breast Cancer Now
Amber
In a letter dated 25/10/2018 stated that it does not “currently fund any projects that require the use of human embryos or human embryonic stem cells”.
“Overall, having been funding ground-breaking research into breast cancer for over 25 years … we haven’t received any research application proposing the use of human embryos or human embryonic stem cells, and we don’t expect this to change.” [#AMRC#] -
Breast Cancer Survival Trust
Green
The Breast Cancer Survival Trust’s “sole purpose is to raise funds and then distribute these in the form of small grants to those suffering the effects of breast cancer”. In an undated letter, this charity states: “I can assure you that we do not give our funds to abortion services, research centres or associations for assisted dying.”
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Breast Cancer UK
Green
In a letter dated 11/12/2018, this charity stated: “Breast Cancer UK has never supported research that uses embryos nor is it our intention to do so in the future. We would not give grant funding to other organisations for projects that use this type of research.”
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British Council for the Prevention of Blindness (BCPB)
Amber
In a letter dated 4/12/2018, the organisation stated: “We only fund research into blindness prevention, and I can confirm that we do not fund any research using human embryos and we do not support organisations who use human embryos.” [#AMRC#]
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British Deaf Association (BDA)
Green
This is a “community-based organisation providing frontline services to Deaf communities”. In a letter dated 17/10/2018 this charity’s fundraiser stated: “I can confirm that the British Deaf Association (BDA) does not undertake nor funds any form of medical research, and more specifically, any form of experimentation or research involving human embryos.”
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British Heart Foundation (BHF)
Red
In a letter dated 22/1/2019, this charity stated: “we support essential research using stem cells because we believe that they have the potential to cure conditions that are incurable today.
“However, we will only fund research using embryonic stem cells where we can be sure:- The application has been through a peer review process, during which researchers must show that this project could not be carried out in another way.
- There is a licence from the Human Fertilisation and Embryology Authority.
- There is ethical approval from an independent Research Ethics Committee.
“However, we appreciate that many people have strong personal views on this subject.”
While this charity accepts the principle of using human embryos for research, it also reports on research which could have important implications for finding regenerative treatments for heart attack and heart failure and which use mice and not human embryos.
To test whether stem cells are incorporating well in the body, they are transplanted into an early-stage embryo and then studied. This cannot be carried out ethically using a human embryo, so researchers use embryos from mice.
https://www.bhf.org.uk/what-we-do/news-from-the-bhf/news-archive/2015/december/stem-cell-breakthrough [#AMRC#] -
British Liver Trust (BLT)
Green
In a letter dated 28/11/2018, the Fundraising Manager of this charity stated: “I can confirm that we are not currently funding, not do we have any plans to fund, any research that involves human embryos.”
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British Lung Foundation (BLF)
Amber
In a letter dated 29/11/2018 this charity stated: “To date we have not funded research that involves the use of embryos and we do not receive research funding application that involve their use. In addition, we are not currently planning to fund work in this area. At present we don’t have a specific policy on the use of human embryos in research.” [#AMRC#]
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British Pain Society
Unknown status
We do not currently have details for this charity.
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British Polio Foundation
Green
In a letter dated 26/6/2019, this charity stated: “… abortion, assisted dying and research using human embryos … are of no relation to the work we do at the Fellowship and therefore we hold no policy on the matter.”
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British Red Cross
Red
The International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies (the Federation), of which British Red Cross is a part, promotes “reproductive health care as a basic human right for every woman” in disasters.
As part of their Minimum Initial Service Package of Care, the Federation guarantees the availability of free condoms to reduce HIV transmission as well as planning for the provision of comprehensive reproductive health services, integrated into primary health care as the situations permit.
The Federation works with the Population Fund on issues of reproductive health in emergency situations. Information given in a letter dated 22/10/2018.