A sheltered housing scheme for over 55s in Carshalton has been awarded £58,000 to build facilities for residents with dementia.

Admiral Court in Blake Close, off Welbeck Road, has been given the cash by the Department of Health, to help towards the cost of a new sensory garden and other facilities recently installed at the site.

Sutton MP Paul Burstow visited residents on Friday, June 19, to help celebrate not just the grant but National Care Homes Open Day.

Mr Burstow said: "It was very much a celebration of all the good that residential homes and sheltered housing can deliver for older people and disabled people.

Your Local Guardian:

Admiral Court residents enjoy a cup of tea during the MPs visit

"We only tend to hear about care homes when things have gone wrong, but in fact there are hundreds and thousands of people living very happy lives in these homes.

"I met some residents who have been living there 10 or 20 years who have had really good lives, and we just had some tea, a bit of cake and a chat.

Your Local Guardian:

Admiral Court has been awarded £58,000 by the Department of Health

"I was impressed with Admiral Court. It's sheltered housing, so the people living there are more independent, but it's a very effective way of dealing with loneliness, one of the greatest scourges in our society.

"Judging by the people I met at Admiral Court yesterday, they certainly weren't lonely. They felt part of a community."