A GRANT of £543,000 marks an important milestone for an innovative Bolton scheme which helps sick elderly people back into society.

The Milestone Project is a joint initiative pioneered by the Community Health Bolton NHS Trust, Bolton Social Services and Wigan and Bolton Health Authority.

The new cash will allow funding for a new 32-bed centre and add up to 12 more beds at centres throughout Bolton over the next 12 months.

Alderbank Community Care Centre in Kearsley was the original venue for the pilot scheme, funded out of winter pressures money.

Teams of professionals, including physiotherapists, occupational therapists, care staff, district nurses, home support staff and social services, provide short term rehabilitation for older people in a friendly, local setting away from the hospital environment.

The pilot proved so successful that permanent funding was secured for the seven-bed centre.

Since, thanks to additional funding, plans to extend the service across the borough are under way. A rehabilitation and assessment centre at Greenmount House, on Chorley New Road, Bolton, is due to open next month, and the extra money means more beds at Thicketford Community Care Centre, Westhoughton's Winifred Kettle Community Care Centre and the Lillian Hamer Community Care Centre in Deane.

Mrs Mary Cropper, director of operations with Community Healthcare Bolton NHS Trust, said: "Of the people who have received care at Alderbank since its opening, 70pc have managed to return to live in the community.

"The nursing and social services staff can offer them expert assessment and care helping them to recover after an illness in a caring, non-threatening environment.

"As well as improving the recovery of these elderly people and giving them the expert care they need it also helps to free up beds for people who require acute care in a hospital environment.

"Extending the project to cover a larger area of Bolton means more people will benefit from the skill and expertise of a multi-disciplinary team."