Maggie’s at The Christie

www.maggiescentres.org

Maggie’s Centres2nd Floor, Palace Wharf Rainville Road London W6 9HN

Maggie Keswick Jencks Cancer Caring Centres Trust (Maggie’s) is a registered charity, No. SC024414

The groundbreaking model of cancer support pioneered by Maggie’s has been developed to meet the practical, emotional and social needs of people with cancer. With new diagnoses rising by 3% each year, there is a growing need for Maggie’s Centres and the evidence-based support they offer people during diagnosis, treatment and survivorship. Across the UK, Maggie’s is working with the NHS to create these exceptional Centres on hospital grounds, helping people with cancer to find essential support that will complement their medical treatment.

Mr Sean Duffy, National Clinical Director for Cancer, England

The need for cancer supportDespite many breakthroughs in cancer treatment and care during the last two decades, almost half of all the people in the UK will have cancer in their lifetime by 2020.

Today, there are two million people living with or after cancer in the UK and this figure is steadily rising, with over 300,000 new diagnoses each year.

The majority of these people need additional practical, emotional and social support to complement the excellent medical treatment that the NHS provides.

As the number of people living with cancer continues to rise, so the demand for support increases, putting pressure on limited NHS resources and highlighting the growing need for additional cancer support across the UK.

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The support Maggie’s providesMaggie’s Centres provide practical, emotional and social support to people with cancer and their family and friends, following the ideas about cancer care originally laid out by Maggie Keswick Jencks.

Maggie lived with advanced cancer for two years and during that time she used her knowledge and experience to create a blueprint for a new type of care for anyone affected by cancer. She saw the need for a warm and welcoming place that would be a refuge from the stress of the hospital; somewhere with professional experts on hand to help with information and advice; a place where you can be with people who understand what you’re going through or simply be alone with your thoughts.

The first Maggie’s Centre opened in Edinburgh in 1996 and since then Maggie’s has continued to grow, with Centres at 15 major NHS cancer hospitals in the UK, as well as online and abroad.

I could say it’s beautiful, quirky and soothing - it’s true. On bad days the light and colour calms me, lifts my mood and helps me put things into perspective. Even just stepping through the door gives me a sense of calm that’s hard to describe. But it means so much more than that too, to me.

It’s a shelter. A place where I can share and be myself - be honest. I find it therapeutic. When I’m wanting company, I can seek it out. When I want to think or read or write or just be alone, I can find solitude in a cosy corner.

I have made many friends here, learnt so much and been greatly inspired by the courage of others in such a short time.

Rebecca, Maggie’s Nottingham

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When I first entered Maggie’s I had just been diagnosed with breast cancer and was in a chasm of fear and uncertainty. Cancer hijacks your life and drops you into a situation where you have to learn a new language. Maggie’s teaches you that language, helping you find sense in all the confusion. Having a Centre within easy reach has been vital to helping me cope.

Rani Shulka, Maggie’s London

People with cancer need places like theseEvery year, 50,000 people are diagnosed with cancer in the North West, facing tough questions, exhausting treatment and difficult emotions that can range from anxiety to loneliness and isolation. These challenges affect not only those with cancer, but their family and friends, too.

Maggie’s at The Christie will be there for anyone and everyone affected by cancer, offering a programme of support based on evidence proven to strengthen physical and emotional wellbeing.

Built alongside the hospital, the Centre will be a place with professional staff on hand to offer the support people need. It will be somewhere to find practical advice about benefits and eating well; a place where qualified experts provide emotional support; a friendly place to meet other people; a calming space simply to sit quietly with a cup of tea.

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The need for cancer support in the North WestThe Christie treats over 40,000 patients a year from a population of 3.2 million people within the Greater Manchester and Cheshire cancer network.

A global leader in cancer treatment, care and research, The Christie has one of the largest radiotherapy facilities in the world and the largest chemotherapy unit in the UK, offering specialist surgery for complex and rare cancers.

Maggie’s and The Christie are working in partnership to create cancer support of the highest quality for people in the North West. This will be one of our most important partnerships to date, bringing Maggie’s together with a world leader in cancer treatment and research. Maggie’s at the Christie will also be one of our busiest Centres, expected to receive visits from 12,000 new people and a total of 60,000 a year once established.

The Christie is one of the largest cancer centres in Europe, with a global reputation for excellence in cancer care.

In an important step towards realising our ambition to become a world leader in cancer services, we are delighted to have the opportunity to work with Maggie’s and develop superb facilities for our patients and their families.

Non-clinical, independent spaces for patients to receive the support they need to complement their physical treatment is vital. The positive consequence of many cancers becoming chronic rather than terminal diseases means that those impacted need a more comprehensive level of support that The Christie and Maggie’s are ready to deliver together.

Caroline Shaw, Chief Executive at The Christie

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The site plan at The ChristieThe Maggie’s Centre will be built in the grounds of The Christie, a peaceful place for people to drop in during and after treatment.

The Centre will be warm and welcoming, full of light and open space, accessible by car from a side road and on foot through a peaceful wooded garden.

The site was chosen for its closeness to existing gardens and tranquil green spaces. There will be a beautiful tree-lined route from the hospital to the Maggie’s Centre, which introduces the natural themes of the building’s design.

The CentreMaggie’s at The Christie is being designed by the world-renowned architect, Lord Norman Foster, who was born and grew up in Manchester.

As one of the leading architects of his generation, his works include an international portfolio of famous buildings including 30 St Mary Axe - otherwise known as ‘The Gherkin’, Hong Kong International Airport and Hearst Tower in New York.

Great architecture is vital to the care Maggie’s offers; and to achieve that, we work with great architects, who give their time for little or nothing. Each architect offers a unique interpretation of the same brief, based on the needs of a person living with cancer, to create the calm environments so important to the people who visit and work in our Centres.

Landscape designer Dan Pearson will create beautiful gardens to surround the Centre, combining a rich mixture of spaces, from a working glass house to bright clusters of flowers and tranquil water features. The colours and sensory experience of nature will become part of the Centre through micro gardens and internal courtyards, which relate to the different spaces within the building. To the south of the Centre, a pool and moving water will provide a calm space for reflection set amidst the greenery. Deep canopies will shelter the Centre’s open terraces from rain and the gardens are designed to look good wet or dry, allowing people to enjoy fresh air and the garden whatever the weather.

We are delighted to be designing a new Maggie’s Centre in Manchester. Both have a particular personal significance, as I was born in the city and have first-hand experience of the distress of a cancer diagnosis. Architecture has the power to lift the spirits and help in the process of therapy. The Maggie’s Centres to date have been inspired acts of patronage and it is a privilege to be able to contribute to this legacy.

Lord Norman Foster

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The Centre plan

Inside the Centre Inside the Centre

Kitchen tableThe kitchen table is the welcoming heart of the Centre; somewhere to meet other people or to simply sit quietly with a cup of tea.

Smaller rooms for individual supportMaggie’s at The Christie will be designed with quiet corners for sensitive conversations, so that even at difficult moments visitors will feel part of the life of the Centre. But sometimes an in-depth discussion with an expert is needed, for psychological support or benefits advice, and so each Centre has a small room providing a private space.

Library areaThe library and information resources available in our Centres are all free. Many people come seeking simple answers to questions about their diagnosis and treatment and, over time, continue to use the library for reference materials and books.

Large rooms for group meetingsThese comfortably furnished rooms are used for talks, timetabled courses and workshops for people before, during and after treatment. These include stress management and relaxation courses, support groups specific to cancer type, and Where Now?, our course for people who have finished their treatment.

GardenEach garden is carefully created to be a welcoming extension of the inside space; it offers uplifting views out from the Centre and, in warmer weather, a pleasant place to sit and relax.

Quiet roomA small, peaceful room where people can go to take some time away from the rest of the Centre, or receive complementary therapy treatment.

Glass houseThe glass greenhouse is a place for people to escape, to work with their hands and enjoy the therapeutic qualities of nature. Integrated with the centre, people will be able to see the flowers and vegetables growing inside, and the activity of people working among the greenery. The plants grown in the glass house can also be used to decorate the interior spaces, making the spaces friendly and welcoming by bringing the garden into the building.

The people who work in our CentreCentre Head Our Centre Heads oversee everything that happens in the Centre, supporting visitors, managing the programme of workshops and courses, and mentoring staff. Their background is typically as a senior NHS Oncology Nurse, radiographer or Clinical Psychologist.

PsychologistOur Psychologist supports individuals on a one-to-one basis as well as running timetabled group sessions focusing on specific cancers.

Cancer Support SpecialistsOur Cancer Support Specialists are the first people you’ll meet when you walk into Maggie’s. They are experienced professionals, who gently explore people’s needs as they welcome them to the Centre and guide them to the information and support they need. They also run courses and workshops.

Benefits AdvisorsOur Benefits Advisors help people to access their full range of entitlements to benefits and grants, as well as supporting them with other welfare issues.

Relaxation therapistsOur relaxation therapists run sessions proven to help with anxiety, stress and pain relief. These include massage therapy, reflexology and meditation.

Sessional staffWe also have members of staff who come into our Centres to provide sessions on nutrition, art therapy and creative writing.

Community FundraiserOur Community Fundraiser is responsible for delivering local fundraising campaigns to raise awareness of Maggie’s among the people who need us and to ensure that ongoing Centre costs are met.

Help us build Maggie’s at The ChristieTo build Maggie’s at The Christie we need to raise £6 million - and before we can start work on the Centre we must reach £5 million of this target.

We would love you to be involved in bringing Maggie’s to the North West. If you’d like to find out more about our work, or about supporting Maggie’s - as an individual, company, local group, trust or foundation, please get in touch:

Pam Wright, Campaign Managerpam.wright@maggiescentres.org07826 946248

How you can support

Support as an individual“I get so much from supporting this brilliant charity. The architecture side was what interested me initially, but having seen first-hand what goes on inside the buildings, you can’t help but be moved by the impact they have on people’s lives.” Jamie Ritblat

People support Maggie’s for many different reasons. For some, like Jamie Ritblat, it’s the belief in the importance of architecture and art to the healing process; for others, it’s a personal experience with cancer or an association with the hospital where we’re based.

Support as a company“I first heard about Maggie’s from our employees, who told me about the great work Maggie’s does for people with cancer. I was intrigued and wanted to see it for myself. I went to the West London Centre and a one-hour tour became a three-hour visit as I learned more about the people, the building and the approach to care. I’m proud that HSBC staff at every level of the company will be taking part in raising money and supporting Maggie’s.” Stuart Gulliver, Group Chief Executive, HSBC Holdings Plc

Companies like HSBC are already supporting Maggie’s by donating time and skills, forming charity of the year relationships and through employee fundraising activities. We want to inspire companies across the North West to get behind our Centres and our work and do the same.

Support as a grant-maker, trust or foundationGrants from trusts and foundations provide much needed funding for a wide range of Maggie’s activities, from the cost of building a new Centre to ongoing operational costs.

Support as a local groupMaggie’s is a cause that unites people in an area, and we have dedicated community fundraisers who work with local groups and businesses to raise the profile of our Centres. Once a Centre is up and running we rely on the local community to help raise the ongoing costs.

Thank you

I found Maggie’s online. I was looking for support and I saw the site and thought, what’s that? I liked the look of it. I was astonished to see that there was no Maggie’s in the North West. So I contacted them and asked ‘Why haven’t we got one?’ And I spoke to someone who explained that in time they hoped to build a Centre. A few months later I called them again and said ‘When is this happening?’ I visited the Nottingham Centre and was struck by how good it was: vibrant and wonderful. That’s what we need here in the North West.

Maureen Jeffs, patient at The Christie

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Board membersJim Martin - Chairman

Amin Amiri

Professor Ruth Ashford

Richard Bailey

Andy Ball

Richard Baigent

Robert Hough

Richard Hughes

Carolyn Mellor

Vanda Murray

Angela Spindler

Maurice Watkins