AN ACCRINGTON care home has finally closed - two years after being condemned as part of Lancashire County Council's controversial plan to axe old folk's homes across the county.
The 35-room Acorn Lodge on Nuttall Street has been boarded up after the 10 remaining residents were transferred to the Woodlands care home in Clayton-le-Moors.
The property will be put up for sale at an auction at Manchester Airport on 7 December.
The issue hit the headlines in 2003 when the county council announced it was to close 32 care homes in the county, including four in Hyndburn, as part of its "care in the community" policy.
Peel Court in Oswaldtwistle, Northlands in Great Harwood and Hill Top in Baxenden have already closed despite a strong protest campaign and a legal challenge.
A spokesman for Lancashire County Council said: "The time scale from the decision being taken to actual closure has been representative of the public sector. We have used the last two years to assess if Acorn Lodge had any value to us and completed a full assessment of the property.
"Care has been taken to ensure the elderly residents were not moved unnecessarily and they have all now been successfully transferred to a new home."
