A pensioner forced out of an old people's home by new Government regulations is demanding a refund from the owner.

Mary Jones, 94, has lived in North Lodge Residential Home in Newick for more than a year but was told it would be closing on February 2.

Her daughter, Lyn Company, helped find a new home for her and she moved out on January 12 although she had paid for the whole of January.

Mrs Company said her mother was entitled to a refund from owner Michael Olliff-Lee.

She said: "It would be a very nice gesture on his part to pay it back because they are all pensioners. Every penny my mother has got has to go on paying the home."

The new Government regulations come into force on April 1 and mean all residential and nursing home rooms must be of a certain size.

Mr Olliff-Lee said: "I have a nine-bed home and three of my rooms don't meet the new sizes. Six is not economic so in one swoop you have lost what I believe was a friendly, small home.

"I believe that everything I did was honourable and above board. I honestly believe I have done everything I could and with as little pain as possible."

Mr Olliff-Lee said every resident or their family had to sign a set of terms and conditions when they came to the home and he was required to give one month's notice, which he had done.

He said he had taken legal advice and as a goodwill gesture he had written to the majority of residents offering them a ten per cent rebate.

He said: "Section six of our standard terms and conditions says if a resident is absent from the home for two weeks, a ten per cent reduction is payable after two weeks. I have in fact waived the two-week period.

"I am not legally obliged but done it as a goodwill gesture. If Mrs Company writes to me I will return the ten per cent."

Mr Olliff-Lee said he had no choice but to close because it was not financially possible for him to meet the new requirements.

Almost all the residents have now left the home and the site has been sold to a property developer.

Mr Olliff-Lee said all the residents had been found new homes and he hoped they were settling in well.

He said: "I think it is upsetting because it is your home and I think from the residents' point of view it came as a shock.

"I have lost my income. All right, I got money from the sale but that has effectively got to last me the rest of my life."