This marks the beginning of a forthcoming network of Centres throughout the rest of the UK, and showcases a unique collaboration between Maggie’s and Rogers Stirk Harbour + Partners (RSH+P) on the site of Charing Cross Hospital, Hammersmith.

Nigella Lawson, officially opening the Centre commented:
“I am delighted to open the first Maggie's Centre in London. Richard Rogers and his team have created both a stunning piece of architecture and, crucially, an intimate and supportive domestic centre which will have a positively helpful impact on people living with cancer”

Maggie’s London evolved from Richard Rogers’ personal response to the brief calling for an aesthetically uplifting environment where people affected by cancer could benefit from the unique Maggie’s programme and find support beyond the hospital environment. The London Centre is situated within a specifically designed garden and series of intimate internal courtyards by leading landscape designer Dan Pearson, extending the remit of the Centre and building on the passion for landscape architecture of Maggie’s founder, Maggie Keswick Jencks.

Charing Cross Hospital invited Maggie’s to develop a Centre on its site after recognising a growing demand for this form of cancer care, and from seeing the huge benefits Maggie’s brings to its users in Scotland. Maggie’s offers an outstanding service for the provision of advice, information and support for cancer patients, their families and friends. Whether through a cup of tea and a chat with users in a friendly kitchen to more structured help from clinical psychologists, Maggie’s helps people facing a cancer diagnosis find direction and structure through their evidence-backed programme of support.

The London Centre will be the first of seven new Cancer Caring Centres planned for England and Wales, bringing the total to 13 by 2012. The first five have been designed by Richard Murphy, Page and Park, Frank Gehry and Zaha Hadid. Their designs are based on the vision of the late Maggie Keswick Jencks who, whilst being treated for cancer, identified the need for patients to access emotional and psychological support and practical information in an uplifting environment. Her husband, Charles Jencks, remains a close family friend of Richard Rogers, who has been hugely committed to this vital project.

Quotes:

Sarah Brown, Patron of Maggie’s, says: “The opening of Maggie’s in London will provide a fantastic service for anyone diagnosed with cancer in the capital. These world-class designed Centres have offered professional support and information for people in Scotland and it is a tribute to this success that they have been invited to London and other locations in England and Wales”

Richard Rogers said: “I am delighted that Maggie’s London is opening. There is a long history linking well-designed buildings and space with healing, which was identified by my friend Maggie Keswick Jencks and has been built on by the work of Maggie’s Centres since 1996. Maggie’s Centres are a vital example of good design serving communities and those in need.”

Maggie’s relies completely on voluntary donations and the London Centre has been supported by individuals, community groups, trusts, and statutory and corporate donations. Maggie’s would like to thank everyone who has supported the £3.5m fundraising campaign for this centre.


Editor’s notes:
To find out more about all of Maggie’s Centres and the programme of support we offer, visit www.maggiescentres.org.uk

•    An estimated one in three people will develop cancer in their lifetime and medical advances mean that more people are living longer with a cancer diagnosis. Maggie’s Cancer Caring Centres aim to equip people with the tools to build a life beyond cancer through access to information and support.

•    Maggie’s Cancer Caring Centres has five existing centres in Edinburgh, Glasgow, Dundee, Highlands and Fife, offering emotional and psychological support and practical information to people who are either personally affected by cancer or know someone who is and would like to be of more support. Seven more centres are planned throughout the UK, to be built by 2012.

•    Maggie’s Centres work closely with the oncology units at the NHS hospitals where they are based, to ensure that the information and support provided complements the treatment given in the hospital. Maggie’s has developed its network of Centres throughout the UK upon the request of NHS Trusts and Health Boards.

•    Some of the world’s greatest architects are working with Maggie’s to ensure each Centre is a remarkable place which raises spirits and empowers the visitor to the Centre to find techniques that will help them live with cancer. Everything is provided free of charge.

•    Charing Cross Hospital, Hammersmith, is part of the Imperial College Healthcare NHS Trust.

…ENDS…