RESIDENTS and staff at Blenheim House in Melksham have officially opened a new area in the home by throwing a Mad Hatter-themed party.

The care home in Bath Road for people with dementia welcomed the mayor of Melksham Terri Welch to cut the ribbon for a new area called Clover Street. In celebration of the works, the staff donned colourful and creative clothes in the style of Alice in Wonderland before throwing a tea party for the residents.

Samantha Bentley, 40, customer relationship manager, said: “The mayor came along and cut the ribbon for Clover Street and the staff looked fantastic. We had a lot of colourful decorations and some really interesting food on the Mad Hatter’s tea party theme like marshmallow cupcakes and carrot-shaped sandwiches. There was also music so the staff danced with some of the residents.”

Clover Street, which currently has 14 residents living in it, offers interesting new features ranging from a pub to a specially made garden area.

“We now have destination areas for the residents including a pub which is also a dining area, a laundry and a convenience store. This is the really important thing for people living with dementia, you don’t want them to feel like they don’t have anywhere to go. If you have one long hall with nothing in it you can find they will just walk aimlessly up and down it,” added Mrs Bentley.

“We even have an outdoor/indoor garden and the Wide Awake Club which means that if anyone has trouble sleeping then can just pop in and someone will be there with something going on.”