Care Workers Charity pays tribute to its patron Lynda Bellingham

The charity for care workers has paid tribute to its patron and actress Lynda Bellingham, who recently died after a long battle with cancer.

The 66-year-old, who died on 19 October, was a popular presenter on the TV show Loose Women and became well known after appearing in the Oxo adverts in the 1980s.

Ms Bellingham had been a patron of The Care Workers Charity, since 2010.

In an interview last year, with Charity Choice, a directory of charities, she talked about her reasons for supporting the charity and those working in the care sector as well as unpaid carers, saying: “Any carer does an amazing job. It is 24-hour, non-stop and if you are caring for somebody you love deeply, it is heartbreaking. The emotional attachment is the most tiring thing. I’ve been working with The Care Professionals Benevolent Fund (now The Care Workers Charity), because I think this (social care) is a very important issue.”

Dr Asif Raja, chair of The Care Workers Charity, paid tribute to her work, saying: “Lynda showed a long-term commitment to UK Carers, and as a patron to The Care Workers Charity, she publicly backed our campaigns and spent time visiting UK care homes to raise the profile of the support available to carers.

“As a small charity, we feel very fortunate to have had the support from such an inspirational lady and her enthusiasm for the care sector will be sadly missed. Our thoughts are with Lynda’s family at this time.”

Ms Bellingham had also been fighting to get more older people into work and for the last two years she had been an ambassador for the Prince's Initiative for Mature Enterprise (Prime) which helps the over-50s start their own companies.

Prince Charles praised her “tireless” work for other people and said he was “greatly saddened” by her death.

Ms Bellingham was born in Montreal, Canada, but grew up near Aylesbury in Buckinghamshire after being adopted. She studied at the Central School of Speech and Drama and went on to star as Helen Herriot in All Creatures Great And Small and played the title role in sitcom Faith In The Future.

The actress, who had two sons and was married three times, was awarded an OBE in 2013 for her charity work.

The Care Workers Charity is the national charity for care workers in the UK. It supports current, former and retired care professionals by providing assistance to relieve financial hardship and sickness.