THE Mayor of Dudley was invited to lay the last brick at a topping out ceremony to mark a milestone in the redevelopment of a Kingswinford care home.

Councillor Dave Tyler, The Mayor, was among the special guests at the event marking completion of the external building work at the new purpose-built New Bradley Hall care facility.

The new three-storey facility will replace the old New Bradley Hall care home which was saved from closure after it was transferred in 2015 from Dudley Council's ownership to leading social care provider - Black Country Housing Group.

Cllr Tyler said he was "very pleased to be invited to lay the last brick and be part of the topping-out ceremony" at the new facility, which is set to open in the spring, and he added: "It will provide top quality living accommodation for residents and having spoken to many of them at the event, they told me about how excited they were about the move.”

The new home, which is being redeveloped by LNT Carehome developments, will be for residents aged 55 years and over and it will comprise 66 bedrooms equipped with en-suite wet room facilities, a flat screen TV, refrigerator, telephone and Wi-Fi service, while the building will also include an in-house cinema, café and a hairdressing salon.

The grounds will include landscaped sensory gardens with outdoor seating for residents and their guests to enjoy - while the home itself will offer specialist care for dementia patients.

Amanda Tomlinson, chief executive of Black Country Housing Group, said the topping out ceremony, which was also attended by councillors, residents and care home staff and included a belly dance performance by Nadia Issa, marked "an important landmark in the redevelopment of New Bradley Hall".