Proposals to spend millions of pounds to create a centre to help people suffering from dementia in Wolverhampton have been approved.

Wolverhampton City Council’s cabinet has given the green light to now seek a private company and find a site for the purpose-built facility. Plans, which are at a very early stage, will see a centre offer therapy rooms, a restaurant and a place for carers’ groups to meet.

Proposals have been unveiled after council bosses revealed they expected the number suffering from dementia to rise from 3,000 people currently to 4,315 by 2030.

The plans form part of a review of dementia care services, which will see families offered training on how to cope with relatives suffering from the condition, which affects memory.

Councillor Les Pugh, who oversees adult services, said: “We need to push forward with this. We want to improve the quality of health care from the point of diagnosis to the end of life.

“We need to remove the stigma around dementia and help family member carers with advice on looking after someone with the condition.

“There are currently two sites in the city centre that we are looking at for a multi-million centre.”

The centre would be built by a private company and is likely to be funded through a private finance initiative deal.

Other proposals as part of the review of dementia care include offering more people use of Telecare in sufferers’ homes. The system works by fitting sensors around the home.

These notify care workers if the person suffers a fall, leaves water running or gets out of bed for a long time at night.

The number of older people in Wolverhampton is also set to rise by 30 per cent in the next 20 years. Those aged 85 and over are set to increase by 78 per cent.

Outlined in the plan are proposals to develop a specialist home care service for dementia, developing a peer support group for carers of people with dementia and only using homes rated excellent or good.

The proposals are subject to consultation in April with more details expected to emerge in June.