DEMENTIA care in Bromley has received a boost after a drop in centre received a grant and a celebrity visit to highlight the importance of the work it does.

Bromley carer Ron Lambert, 81, featured in a film on actress Ruth Jones’ chatshow, What a Cracker, after she visited the Alzheimer’s Society’s drop in centre in Bromley Common.

Earlier this year she met and spent a night with Mr Lambert and his late wife Gladys in their Hayes home to highlight the daily routine of a dementia carer as part of BBC’s Comic Relief.

Mr Lambert said: “I am really pleased to see Ruth again, it was a nice surprise. The drop-in is a very valuable to many people, for me it’s a social thing. It’s like a big family.”

Comic Relief gave Alzheimers Society a grant of £120,000 to develop a campaigners network in England, of which the Bromley branch recently received £5,000.

Kate Moore, Alzheimer’s Society operations director for the east, said: “Alzheimer's Society relies on donations to continue its vital work championing the rights of people living with dementia and the millions who care for them.

“We are very grateful to Comic Relief for their generous funding. As the number of people with dementia rises, we need this kind of support more than ever.

"Currently there are 4,000 people living with dementia in Bromley, and this will increase to 5,000 in the next ten years.”