Action Medical Research is a leading children’s research charity, founded nearly 60 years ago. We’ve been instrumental in some of the most significant breakthroughs in recent medical history including the UK polio vaccine and ultrasound scanning in pregnancy.

By wearing your wellies to work, you’ll help us find ways to prevent life-threatening infections such as meningitis and pneumonia, reduce premature births and improve care for sick babies, develop new treatments to improve the quality of life for disabled children and tackle rare and devastating conditions for which there are currently no cures.

Your wellies will make a difference

Nine-year-old Ilan Powell has always been a little fighter. Born 15 weeks early weighing just 2lbs 2oz, he spent his first four months of life in hospital. During that time, tiny Ilan battled life threatening complications that most adults would be lucky to get through, including a brain haemorrhage. "At times we thought we would never get him home," says Ilan’s mum Anne-Marie. "His arm was like an adult’s little finger and his hand not much bigger than a fingernail. I didn’t get to hold him properly for seven weeks."

But against the odds, Ilan grew into a healthy little boy. Unfortunately for Anne-Marie, her ordeal wasn’t over. Ilan’s younger brother, Iestyn, was also born prematurely. "I had hoped they would have more advanced techniques to help prevent another premature birth," Ann-Marie explains. "More research like that funded by Action Medical Research is desperately needed."