An �800,000 extension at a mid Norfolk village care home has been officially opened.

Dereham deputy mayor Linda Monument unveiled a plaque commemorating the building of the 12-bedroom wing and day room at Shipdham Manor Residential Home, near Dereham.

She was helped by Anthony Cox, 93, who has been a resident at the home for nearly two years.

Major Cox, who used to serve in the Grenadier Guards, lives at the home with his partner, Lady Parry, 89, and was the first person to move into the new wing, which is connected to the Victorian section of the home.

He said: 'We could be in a top class hotel in London. It is marvellous.'

The extension is called Applegarth – named after a house which used to stand on land that the new bedrooms and lounge were built on.

Mrs Monument said: 'I'm very impressed. It has been beautifully done.'

Twelve part-time jobs have been created and Richard Clough, executive chairman of owner Healthcare Homes said: 'It will complete the home because before it didn't link together... The residents love it.'

Healthcare Homes was formed in 2005 and bought Shipdham Manor, along with St Leonards Court in Mundford and Bilney Hall in East Bilney, near Dereham, in 2008.

The company owns 23 homes across Norfolk, Suffolk, Cambridgeshire and Bedfordshire.