THE UK's largest exhibition for the nursing and care home business, showcasing the latest in innovations for the industry, opens its doors at the Bournemouth International Centre on April 5.

The Care Show runs for two days and features a wide range of businesses unveiling new products and services with free demonstrations from 150 leading suppliers from across the industry for professionals in the nursing, healthcare and care home sectors.

Now in its second year, the show was due to be officially opened by Shadow Health Secretary Andrew Lansley at 10am.

New products on show include a range of electronically powered beds from Nexus DMS. They feature "four-function profiling", allowing them to be raised and lowered horizontally, or from either end, and adjusted to raise only the user's back or legs.

A new oxygen-based bleaching agent from Proton will be on display, as will the new Zybax OdourMaster which uses bacteria to remove the cause of unpleasant smells.

Nurse-call manufacturer Courtney-Thorne will be displaying a new "slim-line door" contact unit for care home staff, and Premier Nametapes will be launching iron-on nametapes for the care sector.

Industry professionals will also have the opportunity to sign up to a range of free training courses at The Care Show at the Ethos stand, a national training provider. Courses include advanced care practice, basic food hygiene, risk assessment, safe handling of medicines, infection control and manual handling.

Visitors will be able to attend a series of free fire safety seminars, presented by Chubb Fire.

Another feature is the cookery demonstration theatre, sponsored and presented by 3663 First for Foodservice.

There will also be a two-day nursing and care homes conference, organised by the CEM Group, in the Conference Lounge.

The Care Show is sponsored by The Royal Bank of Scotland, and organised by Wave Exhibitions, where managing director Lorne Cheetham said: "The exhibition has become a forum for innovation and an essential event for care home operators."

The Care Show is supported by major industry bodies including; Hampshire Care Association, Dorset Care Partnership, English Community Care Association and The Registered Nursing Home Association.