RESIDENTS “being forced out of their homes” have spoken of the tears and the insult that have been caused by the plans to demolish their St Ives housing complex to make way for a £7million ‘extra care’ home.

As reported by The Hunts Post last week, social landlord Luminus plans to raze Langley Close, where 57 people live, and replace it with a flagship ‘extra care’ home for 55 people – similar to the firm’s Park View home in Huntingdon.

According to the Langley Court residents, just a few of them would qualify for extra care – as they do not meet the four care visits per day threshold – and would be allowed to move into the new building.

The residents, who are aged in their 40s to their 90s, said this week that they met the announcement with disgust, leaving some in tears and wondering where they are going to live.

The Hunts Post agreed to meet the residents yesterday (Tuesday), but some were unable to tell us their stories as they were told that the arrangement had been cancelled.

Banned from the communal areas of the building, residents spoke in their flats of their concerns.

Diana Goss, whose mother Hilda Mead has been living in the home for 14 years, said: “Myself and my sister live in St Ives so we are always close if anything goes wrong. What is important for my mother is the community and the security. Her next door neighbour will knock on the wall in the morning and my mother will knock back just to make sure everything is okay.

“There are coffee mornings, bingo and outings they can go on but that community will be lost when they move out.”

Terry Hemington, who has lived there for about 10 years, said it was “wrong how they sprung it on us” and added that he did not want to move from St Ives, fearing it could cut his independence later on in life.

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Nigel Finney, executive director (operations) at Luminus, said: “We are pleased the residents have listened to our plans for the redevelopment. Some will have concerns and now it is our number one priority to do everything we can to look after them by having one-to-one meetings to find out their views and rehousing preferences. Our focus is on supporting the residents every step of the way.”