When the late Maggie Keswick Jencks was diagnosed with cancer, she resolved to do something to help others who had the same diagnosis, to create a place of refuge for them where they would find practical and emotional support in a non-institutional environment.
To the architect, Maggie's Oldham is a deliberate exemplar of how to create a fresh, uplifting and caring environment while eliminating the use of harmful materials.
A new Maggie's Centre, designed by Wilkinson Eyre, has opened in the grounds of Churchill Hospital, Oxford. It is set in a small but protected copse of mature trees which screen it from the massive hospital building nearby.