THE foundation stone of a new dementia care facility in Stow-on-the-Wold was unveiled today in a special ceremony at the site.

Gloucestershire County Councillor Dorcas Binns, cabinet member for older people, was welcomed by Orders of St John Care Trust (OSJCT) directors and trustees to officially unveil the foundation stone of the Edwardstow Court 48-bed facility on Fosse Way.

The home, set to open next summer, is being built by Stepnell Ltd in partnership with the Trust and will provide a combination of residential and specialist dementia care.

Speaking at the unveiling this morning, Don Wood, chairman of OSJCT trustees, said he was ‘delighted’ to be opening a dementia care facility in the town.

“We are very proud of our working partnership with the county council,” he said.

“We’ve worked together here [in Gloucestershire] for over 12 years with various schemes and this ongoing partnership is really important to us, it’s a connection we have with the local community through the council and we really appreciate the council’s support.”

Prior to unveiling the stone with its commemorative engraving, Cllr Binns said: “As we all know, we have a lot more people living with dementia, so having a facility like this in partnership with OSJCT is extremely important.

“The facility will allow people to come in at an earlier stage and are well looked after well through their journey.

“People with dementia are not seen as just a burden [by OSJCT], they actually have possibilities and potential, which I think is fantastic.”

Other attendees included representatives from local community organisations, and many of those involved in the design and construction of the project.

Following the unveiling, Cllr Binns was then presented with a thank-you gift by Kevin Hall, OSJCT operations director.