Hebridean Men's Cancer Support Group
We support people who are affected by Cancer and live in the Outer Hebrides.
HEBRIDEAN MEN’S CANCER SUPPORT GROUP AGM – 30 MARCH 2026
As our guest speaker for our AGM we were delighted to welcome Kay Mackinnon, Macmillan Benefits Adviser
Some Key points from her highly informative presentation
• From 2011 to today = 1705 REFERRALS Resulting in FINANCIAL GAINS of £8.7M
• 2024 – 2025 68 referrals resulting in £37,173.52
• 2025 – 2026 102 referrals resulting in £25,263.94
Despite these amazing statistics the service is in danger of being withdrawn as in the last round of funding the Highlands and Islands got no funding via the Local Growth Fund which was to be the replacement funding going forward. It is only continuing this coming year due to the local Council finding room in their already constrained budget to cover this important work.
From the outset is was clear how passionate Kay felt about her role supporting cancer patients and the respect that she has for everyone regarding how they face their diagnosis and treatment.
In her introduction we learned that she worked in the library service from 1983 to Nov 2009 when she started work as a benefits assessment officer with the Revenues and Benefits team.
Her presentation took us through the history of welfare support initially managed by the UK Government until 2013 when Council Tax Reduction and the Scottish Welfare fund were devolved to the Scottish Government.
Following the ‘No’ vote to independence in the 2014 referendum it was recommended by the Smith Commission that authority over several areas of social security be transferred to the Scottish Parliament under a revised devolution settlement which was put into statute through the Scotland Act 2016.
From this Social Security Scotland was founded with the core values of fairness, dignity and respect and in the Summer of 2018 the first devolved payment of the Carer’s Allowance Supplement was made. In Scotland these paid carers the difference between the UK Government amount of Carer’s Allowance and a benefit paid someone who was looking for work.
Since then, several other benefits have been devolved with all disability benefits now being paid by Social Security Scotland.
BACKGROUND TO POST
In 2004 Macmillan had commissioned a report which found that £15 million was going unclaimed every year by people diagnosed with terminal cancer in Scotland. Following on from this report they established financial advice services across Scotland.
A further report found that there was still more than £8 million in disability benefits going unclaimed
Macmillan document 2010 – Local Benefits Advice Services: An evidence review
A Macmillan’s local benefits advice services review found that 91% of cancer patient households suffer loss of income and/or increased costs as a direct result of cancer.
The most widespread increase being the cost of travel. Locally in the time that Kay has been in post there has been no increase in monies received from Patient Travel, but the cost of accommodation has increased dramatically.
Although Nurses, doctors and other patients offered valuable guidance, many did not receive it at the right/best/most effective time.
Debt can be a major problem during illness, causing deterioration in mental and physical health. The effect on carers can also be substantial.
They found that although people affected by cancer may have been able to access benefits advice, the advisers were experts in benefits issues but may lack an understanding of cancer and its treatment which meant that some financial help was being missed.
They could see the impact that their Cancer Specific Benefits Advice Services were having, not only leading to increased income but in turn to psycho-social aspects of health such as levels of energy and tiredness and improved mental health.
Macmillan were looking to invest in the Western Isles and formed a partnership with the Council as they had successfully run a benefits maximisation project called CLAIM IT which had been aimed at securing benefits for over 60’s.
Evaluation meetings were held in Stornoway, Tarbert, Benbecula and Castlebay where they had discussions with community groups, patient support groups and social care.
Initially the post was to sit within Social Work but thankfully it was decided it would best fit in the Revenues and Benefits section.
The post of Macmillan Benefits Adviser came about in late 2010 following a 4-year investment plan.
Kay spoke about her role which included:
Development of the service
Provide Welfare Benefits Advice
Project Reporting
Liaise with partner organisations
Their vision was for her to train volunteers within local voluntary organisations which she quickly realised was not the best vision due to the constant changes in the welfare system.
Kays’ initial training was at the Beatson in Glasgow where she was welcomed by a line of people outside (Guard of honour) when she arrived. Her time there left her in awe of the welfare team there and couldn’t imagine herself having their knowledge and skillset and challenging GP’s, DWP regarding anything and how she hadn’t realised how quickly the fire in her belly would grow and how passionate she would become about fighting their corner.
Kay went on the to speak about the partnerships she works with and always taking a holistic approach. These included:
NHS Western Isles – GP’S and Macmillan Nursing Service
STORNOWAY JOBCENTRE PLUS – Brilliant team
TIGHEAN INNSE GALL – excellent service – work closely with the team
2024 – 2025 68 referrals resulting in £37,173.52
2025 – 2026 102 referrals resulting in £25,263.94
HOME ENERGY SCOTLAND
POINT AND SANDWICK ENERGY SUPPORT UNIT – great support to people in their area.
HEB MENS Cancer Group – exceptional group – the financial help provided is appreciated by so many.
WICCI – near 84% of their referrals in 2024 was through Kay.
ICJ – Don’t have stats
People always so amazed by the wealth of support that is available to them in their time of need.
MACMILLAN BENEFITS SERVICE
2011 to today = 1705 REFERRALS
2024 = 194 REFERRALS
2025 = 166 REFERRALS
GAINS in Financial terms
2011 – TODAY = £8.7 MILLION
2024 = £1,000,069.80
2025 = £1,006,073.19
FINANCIAL INCLUSION TEAM
Kay was approached in 2017 to see if she would create the service and manage the team.
Two advisers employed and started in post at beginning of 2018.
FUNDING VIA: EUROPEAN SOCIAL FUND UNTIL MARCH 22
UK SHARED PROSERITY FUND UNTIL MARCH 26
IN THE LATEST ROUND OF FUNDING THE HIGHLANDS AND ISLANDS GOT NO FUNDING VIA THE LOCAL GROWTH FUND WHICH WAS THE REPLACEMENT FUNDING GOING FORWARD
COMING YEAR FUNDED BY CNES.
THEIR FIGURES FROM APRIL 22 – DEC 25 = 903 REFERRALS
GAINS IN PERIOD APRIL 23 – DEC 25 = £1,633,232.38
LOST APRIL 22 – MARCH 23 IN CYBER ATTACK BUT SAFE TO SAY IT WOULD BE IN EXCESS OF £2 MILLION IN TOTAL
Navigating the System
The Scottish and UK benefits system can be complex due to changing rules and eligibility criteria, it is recommended that people seek independent advice, locally that would be Macmillan Benefits Service, Financial Inclusion Service and CAB. There are also many online calculators that can be used.
Going via an independent advice service ensures that you get what you are entitled to.
Many of the claims that Kay made for Pension Credit in 2024 and 2025 were processed incorrectly by DWP, some of these were progressed via local MP. The general public would not necessarily have been aware of that and not challenged it.
In summary she felt that the public have never needed their support more than now due to the cost-of-living crisis and changes in the welfare benefits systems.
HMCSG AGM 30 March 2026
Our chairman Angus was unwell yesterday so our ever supportive vice chairman stepped in to deliver our chairman’s report. This was followed by a heartfelt and very informative talk by Kay Mackinnon, MacMillan Benefits Adviser. Kay presented an impressive narrative on her career path, the daily challenges and the amazing outcomes and we should all be very grateful for the work she does. So as not to make this post too long we will post some of the highlights of her talk in another post.
CHAIRMAN’S REPORT
Welcome to the Annual General Meeting of the Hebridean Mens Cancer Support Group. To the best of our knowledge, we remain the only men’s cancer support group. And we are most successful with over 30 men coming along every week to meet and talk. I am always astounded at the noise we collectively make. Indeed, earlier this year I asked Donnie to record the sound and post it on our Facebook page.
It has been another eventful year with over 100 men being registered to our group with around 80 coming along some of the time. All the 100 men we contact receive a monetary gift and information about the group and sources of support. That initial contact is universally well received, and we receive many letters of thanks. Recently we received a donation from a bereaved widow of a potential member who had been very pleased to receive our contact letter and despite the fact that he had died without ever coming to the group, she sent us a significant sum of money. We are fortunate that many people and organisations consider our group worthy of support, but our number one fundraiser is the annual raffle which this year raised the amazing total of £33,391. We are indebted to Donnie Morrison for all his work in managing this online. We are indebted for the hundreds of prizes offered to us by so many local firms and people and, of course, we are most grateful to all those who purchase tickets. Our fund raising is essential, but we are conscious that we must always seek to have a healthy balance. We learned the importance of that fundamental funding advice during the period of covid when fundraising was very difficult, but we continued to support men diagnosed with cancer. I wish to thank Ady Morrison and Jack Thorp for their diligent management of our finances. I wish to thank Don Maclean our Secretary and Vice Chair whose support to me is significant and a great comfort. He always has my back. I thank George who keeps our membership record and who has not had the best of health this year. I thank the remaining committee members Ian Minty, Malcolm Newton, Donnie Uist Macdonald, Norman Smith and DL Smith. Their commitment to this group is total and I am grateful to them for their commitment and dedication to our cause.
I should also like to thank those who clear away all our clutter each week and leave everything clean and tidy. It is important that we look after our location. We are fortunate to have these premises in which to meet.
We had yet another very successful Christmas lunch where we honour our partners and supporters. This year our guest speaker was Malcolm Burr, Chief Executive of Comhairle nan Eilean Siar who is coming to the end of his 21 years’ service to the people of the Western Isles. His speech was very well received.
Now I shall ask Ady to present the Annual Accounts which have been approved by our accountants. This year we have agreed to support Maggie’s in Inverness who look after our men very well when they are in Raigmore Hospital for treatment.
Thank you Ady. All committee members have indicated that they are happy to continue to serve.
Now I should like to introduce our guest speaker, Kay Mackinnon.
Kay is the Macmillan Benefits Officer. Her post came under threat, and we wrote in her support to Macmillan pointing out that last year there were 194 referrals for cancer sufferers and that Kay was instrumental in sourcing £1,000, 069 for them. We made our contribution to that sum. Without Kay, we would find it very difficult to contact men newly diagnosed with cancer. She is a very important part of our extended team. I can tell you that her job is secure for the next year but the contribution from Macmillan has been severely cut back; fortunately, in recognition of the important service that Kay provides, the Comhairle has found the resources to co-fund the post but only for this year at present. I should mention that Malcolm Newton conducted his own very persistent campaign in Kay’s defence. Thankyou Malcolm. It is my pleasure to invite Kay to address us.
Murdo Morrison, Anchorage, Tolsta
Murdo died at around 7am on Wednesday morning. He was comfortable in Bethesda with his family in attendance. I saw him in Bethesda just over a week ago and he was the Murdo I remember. He was a lovely man - very interesting and always interested. He was the first to arrive at our Friday afternoon sessions to chat initially with Don and I until just a few weeks ago when he became ill. He was a very talented craftsman, and he spoke very modestly and interestingly of projects he had been involved with over his lifetime. I loved to have a conversation with him. So many people told me in complimentary terms of his professional skills. He loved coming to our group and latterly when his eyesight was failing, he knew us by our voices and he loved the interaction. We are going to miss him - already a great many people have said that to me. We offer our most sincere condolences to his family who have always been the best of friends with our group. We will remember Murdo always.
We are making arrangements for the group to meet as usual on Friday ( it is our aim always to be there for men with cancer). Murdo’s funeral service is at 2.30pm on Friday 27 March in the Tolsta FP Church.
Angus McCormack, Chair HMCSG
