RELATIVES of an elderly woman who died just two weeks after being forced to leave the home for the elderly where she had lived for eight years have called for a change in the law after claiming she was treated worse than an animal.

Ivy Booth, 89, had to leave the St Emmanuel's Residential Home for the Elderly Confused, Blackburn, after her family were given just 24 hours notice earlier this month.

The home had gone into receivership a year earlier and was due to be sold but it was closed suddenly when the sale fell through.

The relatives spoke out as it was revealed that three other nursing homes in Blackburn, Nelson and Rawtenstall have gone into receivership.

Mrs Booth's daughter Mrs Sue Evans found her a place at the Hawkhurst Nursing Home, Shear Bank Road, Blackburn, after she was moved but her condition worsened and she died on Sunday.

Mrs Evans, of French Road, Wensley Fold, said the move had caused her mother's death. She said: "We knew the home was in the hands of receivers but we had no inkling that it was going to close until I got a phone call the night before telling me I had to find her another place.

"I couldn't believe it. I was told the home was closing at 6pm. I had to find somewhere for my mother in 24 hours and 25 minutes." Mrs Booth was a fragile woman who needed a special diet and couldn't stand on her own. She no longer knew her relatives but recognised the voices of her carers at St Emmanuel's.

Mrs Evans had stopped taking her out for family meals as her mother became very anxious when her routine was disrupted.

Mrs Evans said: "She had been in that condition for two or three years but there was no way she was dying. She could have gone on for years in St Emmanuel's. The staff at Hawkhurst were marvellous with her but she didn't know them.

"I stayed with her for two days to help her settle in but she didn't know me either. It was definitely the move that killed her."

Mrs Evans has contacted Home Secretary Jack Straw's office and is calling for a change in the law to prevent elderly people being forced to leave their homes so suddenly. She said: "My mother had been paying £240 a week for more than eight years but she was given no notice at all. You wouldn't treat a dog or a cat like that. We are going to take this as far as we can."

She also plans to complain about the people who were managing the home, after it was revealed that Blackburn with Darwen Council was notified that the home was going to go into liquidation four days before relatives were informed.

Blackburn with Darwen Council social services department has said it monitors homes and does all it can to ensure the welfare of residents when closures are announced.

More homes under threat - see separate story

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