SWANSEA: Wing walks and three peaks: building society staff hand £10,000 to Prostate Cymru

Staff at Swansea Building Society have handed £10,000 to Prostate Cymru, raised through wing walks, the Three Peaks Challenge and a string of runs, to help put specialist cancer nurses into parts of Wales that have none.

The money goes to the charity’s Walk of Wales campaign, which aims to fund six specialist nurses, one in each health board area where there is currently no dedicated prostate cancer professional.

The Society’s link with the charity is personal. In April 2024 Martin Lewis, its area manager for England, went along to a Prostate Cymru PSA testing day run with Swansea City. He had no symptoms. The test found cancer.

“Attending the Prostate Cymru test day was possibly one of the most important decisions of my life, though I didn’t know it at the time,” he said last year. “Like many men, I had no symptoms and wouldn’t have thought to get tested.”

The Society named Prostate Cymru its charity of the year in 2025 and raised more than £25,000 for it, then kept the partnership going into 2026.

Its sponsorship paid for PSA test days in Cowbridge, Swansea and Carmarthen last year, where 1,134 men were tested. Sixty-three of them got a “red letter” result needing urgent follow-up.

Alun Williams, the Society’s chief executive, said colleagues had “gone to tremendous lengths” for the cause.

“From taking on major physical challenges such as the Three Peaks Challenge and Wing Walk to completing runs and organising their own fundraising activities, our staff have gone to tremendous lengths to raise money for a cause that means a great deal to the Society,” he said.

“Our partnership with Prostate Cymru began with a very personal connection and has since grown into something that has engaged colleagues right across the Society.”

He said the Society was “particularly pleased” the money would go towards nurses “in areas of Wales where there is currently no dedicated professional”.

Tina Tew, chief executive of Prostate Cymru, called the Society “an outstanding supporter” and said the donation would help ensure “people affected by prostate cancer have access to dedicated support where it is needed most”.

“Partnerships like this make a real difference, and we are proud to continue working with Swansea Building Society to raise awareness, encourage early detection and improve the support available to communities throughout Wales,” she said.

The Society was named corporate fundraiser of the year at the charity’s Blue Tie Ball in Cardiff earlier this year.

Prostate cancer is the most common cancer in men in Wales, and often has no symptoms in its early stages. A PSA blood test can pick up raised levels before any sign appears.

Prostate Cymru’s next PSA test days, supported by the Society, are due in Neath, Llanelli and Cardiff, with dates to be announced.