Butterfield backs new home for cancer patients

Thursday 31 October 2019

Butterfield has announced its new charity partner is Maggie’s - a facility which provides free practical, emotional and social support to people with cancer and their families and friends, including a new provision for those from Guernsey needing treatment in Southampton.

The charity has a total of 24 centres across the UK and by the end of next year, the first Maggie’s centre on the south coast of the UK will be completed at Southampton General Hospital.

Maggie’s is the first charity partner for Butterfield’s newly formed UK and Channel Islands CSR committee as of this summer and will be supported through various fundraising activities over the coming months.

All proceeds raised in Guernsey and Jersey will go towards the running costs and upkeep of the Southampton Maggie’s centre. Butterfield is also assisting in the creation of “Friends of Maggie’s” in both its Guernsey and Jersey offices which will act as a sub-committee focusing on fundraising for the charity. 

The charity was set up by Maggie Keswick Jencks who lived with advanced cancer for two years. During that time, she used her knowledge and experience to create a blueprint for a new type of care. Maggie’s centres aim to complement the NHS’s medical care by addressing gaps in non-clinical support.

Gemma McKnight, Centre Fundraising Manager Maggie’s Southampton, said: “We are extremely grateful to Butterfield for choosing to support Maggie’s and the new centre on the south coast. In Jersey alone, an average of 600 people receive cancer treatment or follow-up care on the island each year, with approximately a third receiving treatment off-island. Therefore, it’s so important that islanders, their friends and family have access to an alternative and welcoming space to the hospital rooms, accommodation in Southampton and around the hospital site during long inpatient treatment. Maggie’s aim was to offer hope and ‘not to lose the joy of living through the fear of dying’ and that’s what we hope to achieve.”

Alan Bain, Butterfield’s CSR Committee Chairman, UK and Channel Islands, said: “We are delighted to support Maggie’s which does such important work providing free support to islanders living with cancer. When islanders receive treatment in Southampton, they usually stay at nearby hotels, go to hospital and have their treatment, and there’s not much else to do. Many are also very tired after treatment. Now they’ll be able to go and visit a ‘home from home’ at the Maggie’s centre. At Butterfield, we are committed to supporting the communities we call home. This is our way of helping our fellow islanders who are going through an extremely tough time in their life to receive that extra bit of help and support.” 

Pictured: The new Maggie's Centre in Southampton will open next year.