A SENSORY garden which was created as a legacy by members of a gardening club was officially unveiled to the public on Saturday.

The ribbon for the Rossmore Community Sensory Garden, which is located next to the library on Herbert Avenue, was cut by Cllr Marion Le Poidevin from Borough of Poole to the delight of residents and supporters.

Dee Hoy from Twigs Rossmore Gardening Club, which holds its meetings at the library, said that it was a proud day for the club's members, despite having to deal with a theft of some garden furniture from the area.

She said: "We were asked to submit a design for an area of scrubland and we had to come up with something which was for all of the community to enjoy including the elderly, families and children.

"All of our members put their ideas into a pot and then we decided on a sensory garden because there are a lot of people with dementia living in this area and there are things to smell for those who are blind.

"It has taken us a year to create. I'm absolutely elated to see it complete. However, we were absolutely devastated when we discovered the theft of the children's seats. We still have the table, but there's no point putting that out without the seats.

"It's highly unlikely that the seats can be replaced unless somebody is able to donate the wood for the children's seats. They were handmade and it is not something that you can just go to the shop and buy."

Maria Long, manager of Rossmore Library, said: "This idea of the garden sprang from a legacy by Miss Vera Yates, who died in 2014, and used to be a housebound reader who we brought books to for her to enjoy.

"She was so grateful for the library's service and when she left the money to the library, we wanted to do something that was a legacy to her."

She said that in addition to the work of the Twigs Rossmore Gardening Club, they had assistance from some students who attend the nearby St Aldhelm's Academy and around 20 students from Bournemouth University.