A SOCIAL services scheme in Blackpool that enables elderly and vulnerable people to carry on living independently in their homes is proving to be a great success with users and their relatives.

A pager-type system, where users wear a pendant around their necks, linked to a special telephone, allows vulnerable people to contact a 24-hour control centre manned by skilled staff.

The telephone, a hands-free Lifeline 3000 model, can be activated by pressing a button on the pendant, which will contact the control centre and alert staff.

And the system can also be used so that staff can contact people in their homes to check if they are OK or to remind them to take medication, or even just to say hello to those with no other contact.

Duty social worker Phil Hunt said that the scheme enables people to continue living in their own homes and provides a sense of independence.

"It allows people to feel part of the community again. People can make their own judgements and decisions and it puts them back in control at a time when they often feel control is taken away from them. It's very empowering."

He said there was also a mobile warden service which holds keys to people's homes and can visit in case of emergency, or if they had had a fall.

"We could call 999 or a relative or friend, or visit the property. It's not only a telephone service, it's a human voice and someone to come round if there's an emergency. Sometimes an hour means the difference between life and death," he said.

People who feel they need the scheme can phone social services on (01253) 477678. Staff will visit to assess their needs. The telephone system can be fitted the same day if staff consider the need to be urgent. There is a small cost for the system, depending on the person's ability to pay. The absolute maximum cost is £3.50 a week.

And people using the scheme are delighted at having their independence restored. John Caine, 93, from Blackpool is diabetic, has a pace-maker fitted and is partially-sighted. He is able to continue living at home and said he felt more secure since he had the telephone system and pendant. "It's really given me peace of mind," he said.