First Minister opens Marie Curie National Support Centre in Pontypool

The First Minister of Wales, Rt. Hon Carwyn Jones AM, met with staff and volunteers to officially open Marie Curie Cancer Care’s new National Support Centre in Pontypool today (Thursday, May 10).

The centre, which has created 140 new jobs and has 33 regular volunteers, will be the charity’s UK hub for fundraising, volunteering and nursing operations and will see Marie Curie Nurse referrals from across the UK co-ordinated from this new base in Wales.

The centre has four main departments.

• Nursing Referral Centre –the team coordinate patient care 363 days a year for the whole of the UK.
• Nursing Support Centre – the team provide management and support to over 2000 Marie Curie Nurses.
• Volunteering Centre – from which volunteer recruitment is managed for the whole charity.
• Fundraising Support Centre – staff based at this outbound call centre offer support to new and existing Marie Curie supporters.

The First Minister said: "I am delighted to officially open the new National Support Centre for Marie Curie Cancer Care.

The charity plays a remarkable role providing help and assistance for people who need it the most - at the time they need it the most. This new National Centre is an excellent facility that will help Marie Curie staff and volunteers continue to deliver incredible and invaluable levels of support."

Cheryl Gillan MP, Secretary of State for Wales commented: "I am so delighted that Marie Curie Cancer Care chose to invest in Pontypool. This move has created jobs for people who will be working to support the delivery of care to people who are terminally ill. This is a welcome development for Wales and a real gain for terminally ill people and their families across the UK."

Marie Curie Cancer Care’s Chief Executive, Thomas Hughes-Hallett said: "We are delighted to have found a home in Pontypool for the charity’s support and operations activity. Pontypool has much to offer us and we are proud to be able to create new work opportunities for local people.

The ability to recruit locally for key roles together with the availability of good value office space has made the area an ideal choice for our national base.

Demand for our services continues to grow and so centralising the charity’s administrative operations in this way, means our front line staff are freed up to focus on their core work. The introduction of our Nursing Support Centre has meant clinical nursing managers are able to devote more time to the coordination and care needs of patients and their families."

Marie Curie Cancer Care provides free nursing care for terminally ill people and support for their families across Wales, at home or in the Marie Curie Hospice, Penarth.

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