Residents of a care home in Cornwall have been raising a glass to celebrate their lounge being transformed into their very own pub.

Cornwall Care’s Trevarna care home in St Austell has opened The Shamrock Inn with help from St Austell Brewery and Cornwall Signs.

The pub, complete with a set of pumps from the brewery, is based in the corner of the home’s lounge and has been recycled from an old kitchen. Although the pumps don’t contain alcohol, residents can still enjoy a drink and are free to stand behind the bar and have a go.

Natalie Boyden, Trevarna’s Activities Organiser, said: “We have recently added a gentleman’s wing to Trevarna and a lot of our chaps really miss going out to the pub for a pint in the evening. Most of the residents have dementia, so they can’t really go out into the community on their own, so we wanted to bring the community to them.

“It’s been so well received, it’s incredible really. The pub is a conversation starter. It really helps with social skills and brings back a lot of memories for our residents as they share a drink in the comfort of the home. It’s open to men and women of course, and we are planning to use it lots this Christmas, to celebrate birthdays and for quiz nights.”

Cornwall Signs made the signs for the pub and St Austell Brewery supported the project, supplying everything Trevarna would need to replicate a real pub including beer pumps, towels, ice buckets and trays.

St Austell Brewery Property Director, Adam Luck, said: “The pub has long been the focal point of local communities, especially here in Cornwall, as a place where people can come and relax amongst friends. When Trevarna approached us with this fantastic idea to create a safe, sociable place for those at the care home, we were delighted to do our bit to make it as real as possible.”

Trevarna in St Austell is a 53-bed residential nursing home for people in need of residential or nursing support, and one of 16 care homes operated by the charity Cornwall Care.

Cornwall Care offers residential care, nursing care and care at home, looking after more than 1,000 people across Cornwall. It has developed innovative approaches to dementia care and staff training and development, which have won a number of industry awards.

www.cornwallcare.com