Macmillan Cancer Trust

Macmillan Caring Locally (formerly The Macmillan Cancer Trust) is a British registered charity (no. 268218), which was formed in 1974 to support a palliative care unit at Christchurch Hospital in Christchurch, Dorset, southern England. It now also operates The Grove Hotel, a hotel in Bournemouth for cancer patients and carers, and supports a range of posts and services for cancer diagnosis and treatment at the Royal Bournemouth Hospital.

The trust evolved from the fund-raising committee for the building of the first Macmillan unit in the country at Christchurch Hospital. This committee included amongst its members representatives from the League of Friends at the Royal Victoria Hospital (now closed and incorporated into the Royal Bournemouth and Christchurch Hospital) and the local branch of the National Society for Cancer Relief (now Macmillan Cancer Support).

During the final stages of building, it was decided to form a trust to be identified with the unit and it was registered as a charity on 25 July 1974.

It was re-branded in 2009 as Macmillan Caring Locally, reducing the scope for confusion with the UK national cancer charity Macmillan Cancer Support.

The aims of the trust are to support those who are suffering from cancer and other terminal diseases where no cure is expected, and to provide help and support for family members. Latterly the trust has aided services which provide early diagnosis of cancers with a view to enabling early treatment and, ideally, recovery.

The trust's total expenditure on charitable activities in 2009 was £1.2 million, responding to a wide variety of needs supporting the NHS, primarily for the Macmillan Unit, but also for other cancer sufferers in south east Dorset and west Hampshire.

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