Freezing weather forces force Silverlands Care Home to close

Pensioners were forced out of a nursing home in Hatch End because the site could not cope with the severe weather conditions.

All 26 of the residents at Silverlands Care Home, some of whom suffer from conditions such as Alzheimer's, were evacuated to Hatfield last week, following problems with water pipes and central heating.

It is anticipated they will not be transferred back to the Wellington Road site for as long as three months.

One family member of a resident at the site, who wished to remain anonymous, said: "I think it's all a bit unsettling for those staying there because all of a sudden they are having to try and come to terms with different surroundings again.

"Unfortunately, Hatfield is hardly the closest place to Hatch End, which makes visiting a lot harder, making the whole situation worse for everyone."

Sanctuary Care, which runs Silverlands as well as a number of other sites across the country, claimed the move had occurred without a hitch and that the home in Hatfield is more than capable of dealing with an additional 26 residents.

Rita Harris, regional manager for Sanctuary Care, said: "We have safely transferred all 26 residents from Silverlands Care Home to Hatfield Nursing Home in Hertfordshire, following problems with underground water pipes.

"We are pleased to confirm that they are all safe, well and have quickly settled into their new surroundings. Although the move was initially disruptive for them, our residents are all very happy and comfortable at Hatfield, which is one of our newest, state-of-the-art homes and therefore has the bed spaces to keep them all together, which was essential to ease their transition.

"We have arranged transport to enable Silverlands' staff to continue caring for our residents for the duration of their stay at Hatfield and despite the bad weather we have managed to get all the staff to Hatfield and they have overnight bags in case the weather worsens.

"This situation was unavoidable after engineers confirmed the heating system and water pipes under Silverlands needed replacing, work which could take around three months to complete."