A HUGE celebration has been held to mark the tenth anniversary of the borough's "home from home" scheme, for disabled children and their parents.

Special guests at Friday's party, held at the Radcliffe Civic Suite, included the Mayor and Mayoress of Bury, Councillor John and Mrs Anne Costello, and Mr Jim Wilson, the chief social services officer.

But the real stars were the carers who, through their love and support, have made the "home from home" scheme what it is today.

Carers, past and present, joined in the celebrations. When the scheme started there were only about a half-dozen families involved in the project. Today, around 35 families across the borough look after disabled children to give their parents a short break.

Ms Elsie Brown, from Bury social services, said: "The carers, who provide support for disabled children, are fantastic and make a real difference to the lives of parents who have disabled children. And at the same time the children gain confidence when they spend time with their carers and meet new people."

She added: "But we always need more families to link up with disabled children and their parents."

Ms Brown said her department covered any cost incurred by carers when looking after the children.

She appealed for anyone interested in becoming a carer and who would like to be linked to a family to ring 0161 253 5457.

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