A MAN cleared of a double murder after spending 18 years in prison has vowed to fight to save the Great Harwood children's home where he lived.

Peter Fell pledged to enlist the support of MPs as union leaders expressed concern at the speed of a shake-up of residential provision for children in Lancashire - and warned it could lead to youngsters being homed outside Lancashire.

Lancashire County Council has already closed two East Lancashire children's homes, Dyke Nook in Accrington and Marsden Hall in Nelson, and plans to cut another four. As well as Blake Gardens in Great Harwood, one in Barnacre Road, Longridge, will be closed, along with two in Chorley.

A report to the county council said the aim was to get more youngsters living with foster parents rather than in institutionalised homes. The remaining homes will be remodelled with no more than six children in each, along with two carers.

The county wants to increase the number of foster parents it has from 521 to 621.

Mr Fell spent three years living in Blake Gardens after the foster parents he had been placed with had taken him to live in the South and then claimed they could no longer look after him.

He said: "I was sent back to Lancashire and it was very unsettling for me overall.

"I spent three years in Blake Gardens and I was able to put down roots and actually feel as though somewhere was my home. I don't think you always get that with foster parents because, as the figures show, many often drop out and you end up being shunted around."

Mr Fell now lives in London after being cleared the murder of two women dating back to 1992. He hopes that the publicity given to him during the appeal will lead to him being able to campaign on issues which affect other people.

UNISON, the public sector workers' union, has also raised concerns about the way the closures are being handled.

Spokesman Carl Owens said: "The loss of these establishments has already meant that children who would previously have been placed in these more structured environments are now placed in the less structured children's homes."

Consultations have now started on the closures before the planned closures in April.

Hyndburn MP Greg Pope said he had been contacted by Mr Fell about the plan. He said: "I shall be raising this matter with the county council."