Drive-through visits bring cheer to care home residents

A care home in Britain's south west has started a drive-through visiting system for the families of its elderly residents.

Under coronavirus lockdown regulations, visits to care homes across the country have been barred in an attempt to protect the vulnerable occupants.

Now Sefton Hall in Devon has devised a way for residents to see visitors - human and animal - for the first time in more than eight weeks.

Strict distancing rules mean the visitors must stay in their vehicles. Protective gear is compulsory and a timetable for the visitors has been imposed.

A hug from a loved-one is out of the question, but the measures are appreciated by both the residents and their families.

Across the UK, thousands of people have died in care homes after becoming infected with Covid-19, according to the government's own statistics.

A recent Reuters investigation detailed how the British government's focus on shielding hospitals, to prevent emergency wards from being overwhelmed, left care home residents and staff exposed to the virus.

To free up hospital beds, patients were discharged into homes for the elderly and vulnerable, often without being tested for the coronavirus that causes the disease.