BUSINESS owners in Wellington have been praised for supporting elderly Abbeyfield Society residents in the Old Vicarage, in High Street.

Senior house manager Rebecca South and other staff from the charity visited shops and other businesses in the town before Christmas to ask for help with fund-raising.

They responded with more than a dozen prizes being given for a Christmas raffle which then raised £400 for the charity.

The money will be put toward the cost of installing a patio in the rear garden of the Old Vicarage to provide safe access for residents to its summerhouse so they can avoid the slippery and uneven grass surface.

Ms South said: “We found the businesses were in the main very generous and we are really grateful to all those who gave us such fantastic support.

“It is wonderful to know that we have such caring traders and business people in Wellington who are prepared to help those in the town who are less fortunate.

“Some of the residents were able to go off to be with relatives at Christmas and we prepared a roast dinner for those who stayed with us.”