Award boost for Maggie's Glasgow

Charles Jencks, co-founder of Maggie's, when he appeared at the launch of the centre at Gartnavel.

They include appreciative Mags Hay, from Newton Meanrs, who first visited the Maggie’s centre in the grounds of Gartnavel Hospital back in January.

She said: “I first started coming to Maggie’s because after treatment I felt like I needed some extra support with what to do next.

“I signed up for the Where Now? course and absolutely loved it. It was just fantastic.

“Someone came to do some personal training with us which was brilliant because you want to get fit and well again but you don’t know how to go about it.”

The ScottishPower Foundation award has funded this year’s Living Well with Cancer Programme which includes Where Now?, a seven-week course for anyone who has finished their cancer treatment, offering skills and techniques to support through this transition.

Undergoing treatment for cancer can be an intense and challenging time for patients and often the focus is getting to that last appointment when life can get “back to normal”.

However coming to the end of treatment can often present new challenges, with people feeling uncertain about the future.

Mags added: “A lot of the course was open discussion, which was so helpful too because you pick up so many hints and tips from other people.

“I think everyone on the course was sad when it was finished because we had formed a real bond and had all been helped so much.”

The next Where now? course at Maggie’s Glasgow will start on July 11.

It examines some of the challenges that people may face at the end of treatment including fear or uncertainty about the future, diet and exercise, managing post-treatment challenges, follow-up appointments and returning to work.

ScottishPower Foundation are supporting Where now? among other key courses as part of the ‘Living well with cancer’ series.

The programme of support offered at Maggie’s Glasgow has been shown to improve physical and emotional wellbeing during treatment for cancer and during recovery.

Ann Mckechin, Head of CSR from the ScottishPower Foundation, said: “It is important to recognise how cancer affects people throughout their journey and the ScottishPower Foundation is delighted to be funding this programme which focuses on providing practical support to individuals at key stages”.

To book onto the course or to find out more, call the centre on 0141 357 2269 or email: [email protected] or just call in to chat to one of the team.

Built in the grounds of Gartnavel Hospital, Maggie’s Glasgow is a warm and welcoming place, with qualified professionals on hand to offer an evidence-based core programme of support that has been shown to improve physical and emotional wellbeing.

To find out more about Maggie’s Glasgow and to see how the Centre supports people with cancer across Glasgow and the West of Scotland, please get in touch on 0141 330 9791 or [email protected]

Charles Jencks, pictured above, is co-founder of Maggie’s - although possibly best-known as an American architectural theorist, landscape architect and designer.

He supported fellow co-founder Maggie Keswick Jencks, his wife through her battle with cancer, and during the last 18 months of her life they worked hard to devise a new approach to cancer care.