Broadcaster and journalist Angela Rippon has taken time out of her busy schedule to support a new dementia care facility for retired seafarers.

The new annex at the Royal Alfred Seafarers’ Society in Western Acres Banstead, which is scheduled to be opened in July, will increase the home’s capacity for people suffering with the condition by up to 36 residents.

This means specialised dementia support from trained staff will be readily available without the need to travel off-site to hospitals or other support facilities.

Miss Rippon, who is a former newsreader for the BBC, has personal experience of supporting a loved one with the condition after her mother Edna was diagnosed with dementia in 2004 and sadly died in 2009.

She became an ambassador for the Alzheimers Society in the same year.

She said: “Dementia is the curse of the 21st century and one likely to touch us all either directly or indirectly. By lending my support to projects such as this I hope to raise the profile of the condition and the specialist care required to support sufferers.”

Commander Brian Boxall-Hunt OBE, chief executive of RASS, said: “Recent research has shown the number of people living with dementia is increasing. Our objective for the new centre is to use both expert staff and a specially designed environment to deliver the very best care for sufferers.

“By linking this to reminders of their former life at sea makes this as comfortable and fulfilling as possible.”

The Royal Alfred Seafarers’ Society is a registered charity and was established in 1865.

It aims to provide accommodation, care and support to former seafarers, who may need special help and companionship in their old age due to the isolated nature of their careers.