Sanofi presents bursaries to UK charities

Sanofi has presented funding awards to three UK health charities through its annual Patient Group Bursary initiative.

Ataxia UK was granted 25,000 pounds for the rollout of a 'befriender' scheme for ataxia patients, while Crohn's and Colitis UK has been given 15,000 pounds for a residential weekends project for young people with inflammatory bowel disease.

Meanwhile, the Muscular Dystrophy Campaign is being allocated 10,000 pounds to develop an expert-patient consultancy scheme, allowing neuromuscular patients to help improve service provision in their local area.

Steve Oldfield, general manager of Sanofi and chair of the judging panel, said: "We were thrilled to have received over 100 applications to the 2012 scheme – nearly a threefold increase from last year – and we look forward to seeing these projects come to fruition."

Last month, the company announced a new alliance with Harvard Medical School's Joslin Diabetes Center, which will focus on the development of new treatments for diabetes and related disorders.