A COUPLE at a Stroud care home have shared their secret to a happy marriage after 20 years together.

As part of Valentine's Day reminiscing activities at Scarlet House, on Westward Road, Keith and Dorothy Robinson looked back on their time as a couple.

Keith and Dorothy said that for them, the key to a successful relationship was love and understanding.

The home also prepared goodie bags full of treats for everyone and hosted a writing session to help other residents to write to their loved ones outside the home.

When asked what advice he’d give to young people in love, Keith said: “Marry for the right reason, don’t rush into it and have no secrets.”

Vlad Nastasa, home manager at Scarlet House, said: “Keith and Dorothy are truly inseparable, and we could all learn a thing or two from their happy marriage, so we thought we'd encourage them to reminisce and share their pearls of wisdom. Many of the residents have also been reminiscing and sharing fond memories of their own wedding days; it's been lovely to hear their stories too.

“We’ve organised plenty of reminiscence activities throughout the week, and it was great to be able to treat the residents to chocolates and sweets. We’d like to say a big thank you to Keith and Dorothy for their wise words – they certainly gave us food for thought.”

Keith, 89, a former school caretaker, and Dorothy, 90, a former nurse and deputy matron at a Weston-Super-Mare care home, first met when they were both attending the same primary school near Wigan.

They became friends, but lost touch when Dorothy moved away; they reconnected decades later, when she came back to visit her brother after her first husband passed away.

The couple were inseparable from then on, and married in Wigan in 1991.

Both enjoy ballroom dancing together and have lived an active lifestyle, as Keith played football in a local league in Lancashire, while Dorothy enjoyed cycling and walking in her younger years. They fondly remember buying their first home together in Wigan and their honeymoon in Blackpool; Dorothy describes Keith as ‘romantic and very attentive’, as he buys her flowers regularly.