A CARE home group has invested £50,000 into dementia services in Great Sutton.

CLS has officially opened a 10-bedroomed dementia care unit at its Astbury Lodge facility at Randle Meadow on the Hope Farm Estate.

Known as the Meadows, the unit has benefited from £50,000 investment in the latest design to provide a supportive environment for residents with Alzheimer's disease.

Borough mayor Kenny Spain cut the ribbon on the day, and senior care team leader Leanne Smith welcomed 42 residents and their relatives to the event.

Home manager Jenny Ringstead showed Cllr Spain round the complex, which contains three en-suite and seven standard rooms, colour-coded doors, pressure-pad warning systems and adapted wardrobes.

She said: 'There is a shortage of dementia care beds not just in the Ellesmere Port area but the North West as a whole. There have been reports of local families having to find accommodation in Wales so this unit will be a big asset to the area.'

CLS says the county council estimates the number of people with dementia in Cheshire will rise by 20% during the next 10 years.