A BASINGSTOKE-based charity has received a £5,000 from the Morrisons Foundation to help fund a project at a hospital.

The Wessex Heritage Trust is running the Memory Lane project designed to aid dementia patients at Basingstoke and North Hampshire Hospital.

The aim of the project is to build a room in a corridor of the hospital to replicate a street scene, to help patients’ memory with the £5,000 donation from the Morrisons Foundation going directly toward its construction.

Ian Smith, from the Wessex Heritage Trust, said: “The Memory Box project was started by a Big Lottery grant and collects items themed to specific memories, be it Christmas, or even just going down to the shops, which can really help their memory.

“We help to train the volunteers that are there. Now we have the chance to help them in the hospital through the Memory Lane project.”

Rachel Hayden, lead dementia specialist at Hampshire Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust, said: “Reminiscence is a crucial part of dementia care, and putting this Memory Lane into place will enable us to provide a really stimulating environment for our patients.

“The money raised will have a huge impact on the patients we care for and I’d like to say a big thank you to the Morrisons Foundation and The Wessex Heritage Trust. We are really pleased.”