Buckingham Palace Reception

On 30th April 2025, the Corinne Burton Memorial Trust — the UK's only charity solely dedicated to art therapy in cancer care — was honoured at a royal reception hosted by Their Majesties The King and Queen at Buckingham Palace. The event celebrated the work of grassroots cancer charities across the UK.

CBMT was one of just five charities specially featured in the Palace programme and display.

Our Presentation

The CBMT display in the Throne Room highlighted:

• Powerful artwork and reflections from cancer patients at Barts Health NHS Trust, as well as a consultant oncologist who took part in art therapy as a junior doctor
• CBMT-published books exploring art therapy in cancer care
• Research papers by our art therapists evidencing the impact of art therapy in psycho-oncology

Our Team at the Palace

Three CBMT trustees (including Sir Michael Burton), one of our donors, and two art therapists from our team attended the evening, representing the heart of the charity's mission and impact. Our art therapists were represented by Megan Tjasink, Lead Art Psychotherapist in Cancer Psychological Services at Barts Health NHS Trust, and Anna Magnowska, a former nurse who retrained as an art therapist through a CBMT scholarship and now works full-time in cancer and palliative care — a testament to our commitment to nurturing future specialists.

Our team spoke with Health Secretary Wes Streeting, NHS England leaders, His Majesty the King, and the Duchess of York — many of whom were encountering the role of art therapy in cancer care for the first time. His Majesty's reflections on his personal experience of cancer brought warmth, empathy, and a shared understanding to the evening.

As a small profession, art therapy is often overlooked in broader cancer care policy — so to be recognised at this level was deeply meaningful.

A heartfelt thank you to all our supporters, and to everyone who has contributed to over 30 years of the Corinne Burton Memorial Trust's work. Your support ensures that art therapy continues to offer comfort, connection, and healing to people affected by cancer.