Residents at a Dorchester care home have been using their skills to help keep struggling animals and babies stay warm this winter.

Each week, Maiden Castle House care home, in Gloucester Road, holds a ‘Knit and Natter’ group for the residents, providing an opportunity to socialise and have fun together on a regular basis.

The group, which is run by volunteer Hilary Green, decided to help others with their knitting, so went to work creating hats and mittens for babies, as well as blankets for homeless cats and kittens.

Once they had finished, the residents delivered the knitted clothing to the Special Care Baby Unit at Dorset County Hospital, and dropped the blankets off at the RSPCA rehoming centre at Kingston Maurward.

While at the RSPCA centre, the residents also got the chance to look around and meet the cats they were helping.

Maiden Castle House home manager Rachel Sohorye said: “This was such a kind gesture by the ladies of the Knit and Natter group. We take pride in being part of the Dorchester community and hope this will help the babies being looked after in the Special Care Unit, as well as the cats and kitten at the RSPCA centre.”

Maiden Castle House is a residential and dementia care home run by not-for-profit charity Care South.