Duke and Duchess of Cambridge open Oak Centre for Children and Young People
29 September 2011
The new Oak Centre for Children and Young People at The Royal Marsden's hospital in Sutton was today officially opened by TRH The Duke and Duchess of Cambridge. HRH The Duke of Cambridge has been the President of The Royal Marsden since May 2007.
Hundreds of people, including staff, patients, and the local community, waited to catch a glimpse of the royal couple. Upon arrival, they were greeted by The Royal Marsden’s Chief Executive Cally Palmer and Chairman Ian Molson.
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Brand new facilities
Chief Executive Cally Palmer said: “We were delighted to welcome the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge to The Royal Marsden today to open our new Oak Centre for Children and Young People. The Centre is named after the Oak Foundation which generously donated £10 million towards the cost of the building and we would like to thank the trustees for their immense generosity.
“Our new centre is one of the largest of its kind in Europe and we are incredibly fortunate to have had the support of so many people, including our President.
“These brand new facilities, together with state-of-the art technology, provide increased capacity to help us meet growing demand and provide an environment for young patients which meets all their health, educational and social needs.”
Chairman Ian Molson said: “It is thanks to the support of The Royal Marsden Cancer Charity and Teenage Cancer Trust that we have been able to raise the funds to help The Royal Marsden provide world-class care for young patients in a wonderful new environment.”
Simon Davies, Chief Executive of Teenage Cancer Trust which contributed towards the Teenage Cancer Trust Unit, said: “The opening of the Oak Centre for Children and Young People is a significant milestone for Teenage Cancer Trust. It means teenagers and young adults with cancer living in London and the South East now have access to the specialist care our units provide. As with all our 18 units, young people will be treated here, with others their own age, by highly skilled health service staff in an environment suited to their needs.”
The Duke and Duchess spent nearly two hours speaking to patients and staff in the centre and were clearly impressed with the new facilities. The Duke of Cambridge recalled his memories of the old Children’s Unit when he did his work experience there nearly six years ago. He said he was honoured to open the new £18 million centre and was delighted to see the final results.
Professor Andy Pearson talks about the Centre
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Photos from the event will be published on this website soon. In the meantime, please have a look at some of the coverage we received: