Woman who faked cancer and defrauded charity she worked for jailed

A woman who stopped turning up to work after lying she had been diagnosed with cancer has been jailed for two years.

Claire Alderton, 48, from Portsmouth, also fabricated references to her charity employer before she was appointed to the position of trusts and foundations fundraiser in June 2024, including using fake emails.

During her employment, she lied to charity George's Rockstars by falsely stating she had submitted applications for grants as part of her role.

Alderton was sentenced at Portsmouth Crown Court after pleading guilty to committing fraud by false representation by dishonestly providing two false references to gain employment at the charity.

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A Hampshire Constabulary spokesman said: "In December 2024, Alderton told her employer that she had been diagnosed with cancer and stopped attending work, she then stopped responding to any contact from the charity.

"The charity contacted the foundation that Alderton said she had secured a grant from, only to find out that no application had ever been made.

"They then made contact with Alderton's referees through LinkedIn, who informed them that they did not write the references she had provided, and that the emails which were allegedly from them were fake."

Amy O'Shaughnessy, who co-founded the charity after losing her son George to leukaemia in 2019, said: "To target charities, secure employment through deception, and fabricate a cancer diagnosis to the mother and founder of an organisation established in memory of a child who bravely fought that very disease is truly abhorrent.

"Furthermore, to falsify funding applications meant to support seriously ill children in hospitals is a profound betrayal of public trust.

"George's Rockstars was created to preserve my son's legacy and provide music therapy to families navigating their darkest hours in hospitals.

"While our services face immense demand, I have had to work tirelessly simply to prevent his legacy from going under due to her fraudulent actions.

"We have fought incredibly hard to ensure that, despite the gravity of this deception, our support for children and families remains uninterrupted.

"Personally, uncovering the sheer depth of these lies has been emotionally devastating. A custodial sentence is the absolute least she deserves for exploiting the charity sector and the vulnerabilities of a grieving family.

"We are deeply grateful to the police and the justice system for their rigorous work in ensuring accountability and securing this conviction."

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