Marie Curie Cancer Care has joined Carers Week for 2012. The charity, one of the biggest in the UK, provides free care to people living with terminal cancer and other illnesses in their own homes and the charity's hospices. It is the largest provider of hospice beds outside the NHS. Employing more than 2,700 nurses, doctors and other healthcare professionals, it provided care to more than 31,000 terminally ill patients in the community and in its nine hospices last year and is the largest provider of hospice beds outside the NHS.
Around 70 per cent of the charity’s income comes from the generous support of thousands of individuals, membership organisations and businesses, with the balance of our funds coming from the NHS. The charity is best known for its network of Marie Curie Nurses working in the community to provide end of life care, totally free for patients in their own homes.
Sainsbury's
In December 2010 Sainsbury's announced that it had become the first retailer to sign a partnership with Carers UK. As a result of this,Sainsbury's has joined the Leadership Group of Employers for Carers, amembership forum of employers committed to working carers, chaired by BTand supported by the specialist knowledge of Carers UK. Sainsbury'srelationship with Carers UK continues to grow, with the sponsorship ofCarers Week the latest commitment.
Sainsbury's is now working with Employers for Carers and Carers UK toensure all of its HR policies are carer friendly and in 2011 launched atrial scheme to identify hidden carers using its Torbay store. Thistrial was such a success that later this year it plans to launch asecond initiative working in partnership with the Department on Healthto identify and support hidden carers in over a dozen of its Londonstores.
Rebecca Couper at Carers Week, says: "It's great to have such high profile support involved in Carers Week 2012. They each bring qualities to the partnership that complement those of our other partners, and will help us to support even more of the UK's six million carers."
