Student section

Who we are?

CLEFT is a national charity which aims to create sustainable cleft lip and palate care both overseas and in the UK. CLEFT works with local teams in low and middle-income countries to provide education and equipment to help develop and maintain high-quality, multidisciplinary CLEFT centres. CLEFT also funds and supports research investigating causes and treatment of clefts.

CLEFT Student Section is a national body of University Student Ambassadors who fundraise and help to spread the word of CLEFT through events in their local and regional areas. We are passionate about helping those who are born with cleft lip palates and craniofacial abnormalities around the world and believe that everyone should have an equal opportunity to appropriate treatment and care.

Meet our student team

Why CLEFT is important to us

Children around the world born with cleft lip palates and craniofacial abnormalities face many challenges. These include but are not limited to, feeding difficulties, speech and language problems, societal challenges, airway and eye infections, and mortality. These children require a multidisciplinary team with knowledge and resources to prevent complications occurring and treat them when they arise.

We believe every child around the world deserves a standard of appropriate medical care. However, unfortunately many children do not have access to this. CLEFT aims to provide teaching and resources to medical teams globally to combat this issue and leave areas with a sustainable infrastructure to effectively treat and care for cleft patients.

How can you get involved?

Our University team mimics those who care for cleft patients. We are made up of a multidisciplinary student team including medics, dentists, speech and language therapists, nurses, midwives, and physios.

Applications are considered year-round so there is no limitation in those wanting to help us. Please see the roles available bellow and click the link or scan the QR code to find out more and apply.

Roles available for your University Student Committee are:

Lead Ambassador
Vice Lead Ambassador
Secretary and Social Media Officer
Treasurer
Surgical/Dental/SALT/Medical Representative

If you would like to apply to become a Student Ambassador, please click here to complete the Application Form

You can also access the application form by scanning the QR code:

Newly elected student ambassadors

If you are a newly elected student ambassador and would like to create your CLEFT identification on the website, please click the yellow button below to complete a short form.

Student Ambassador Identification Form

If you have any questions, please do not hesitate to contact us by emailing [email protected]

If you would like to find out more about what it means to volunteer for CLEFT, please click the link to read more.

Latest

Rona, Richard, Jon and Simon ride 100 miles

Join us in raising funds for the CLEFT: Bridging the Gap! CLEFT has 2 great aims: to support sustainable and multidisciplinary cleft care in lower and middle income countries (surgery is important but only part of the journey), and to support research into the causes and provision of cleft care in the UK.
Zhi's Dublin Marathon Fundraiser

I am raising money to provide long-term, sustainable ways to improve cleft care both in the UK and overseas.
Nick and Kathleen's Wedding Fundraiser

We are raising money to provide long-term, sustainable ways to improve cleft care both in the UK and overseas.
The difference a Comprehensive Cleft and Craniofacial Centre can make

During his visit to Dhaka earlier this year, Mr Brian Sommerlad (Chair of CLEFT and Consultant Plastic Surgeon) saw a number of familiar faces in the clinic. Shahriah and Khadjiatul are two patients requiring a large number of operations and complex treatments throughout their lifetime.

Sheikh Hasina National Institute of Burns and Plastic Surgery

We are working with Bangladeshi specialists at the new Sheikh Hasina National Institute of Burns and Plastic Surgery to create a sustainable centre to treat children with cleft lip and palate.
Nawrin and the C-Arm

This important piece of equipment was supplied by CLEFT and is used to see moving images of the cleft palate. Nawrin is a 13 year old girl who was experiencing speech difficulties and needed the C-Arm to show the cleft team if further surgery was required.
Our mission

CLEFT was established in 2007 with one aim, to help improve the lives of children born with cleft lip and palate, either by funding research into the likely causes of the condition or by helping support teams in lower and middle income countries.
Donate

You can make a one-off donation today or sign up to giving a regular monthly gift. All donations, small or large, will help us to improve the lives of those born with cleft lip and palate both now and in the future. 100% of your donation today will go towards funding an international or research project thanks to a charitable trust covering all our administrative costs until February 2025.
About us

CLEFT was established in 2007 by cleft surgeon Brian Sommerlad - based at Great Ormond Street Hospital for Children, together with a former patient and a patient's grandmother.
The genetics of cleft lip and palate

Investigations into the genetics of cleft lip and palate to understand more about why cleft lip and palate occurs.
Brian Sommerlad, Consultant Plastic Surgeon and Chair of Trustees

For over 40 years, I have been involved in operating on babies, children and adults who have been born with cleft lip and/or palate.
Our research vision

At CLEFT, our vision is of a future where clefts are preventable. Until we get there, we want to improve the lives of those born with cleft lip and palate.
Trusts and Foundations

Today, 1-in-700 babies in the UK are born with a cleft lip and palate, the most common form of birth defect. The impact on a child’s life as they grow is profound. Typically, they will need at least four operations. They may also require ongoing tests, treatment or therapy. It will affect the way they look but also their speech, hearing and dental development. It can leave deep psychological scars.
Our philosophy

The two arms of CLEFT are brought together by our mission to bridge the gap in cleft care and knowledge both in the UK and around the world. Our international and research philosophies are at the very heart of our work.