Elderly residents of a South Lakeland sheltered housing complex have joined forces to fight plans to knock down their homes, reports Ruth Lythe.

A recommendation to demolish Gowan Lea, in Burneside, has been approved by South Lakeland District Council's management team.

The SLDC-owned sheltered housing scheme offers warden care to its 26 elderly and infirm tenants who mainly live in single bedsit flats.

SLDC housing officers have compiled a report recommending that Gowan Lea should be demolished as part of an appraisal of sheltered housing throughout the area.

The report suggests selling the land to a housing association that is set to construct 12 two-bedroom bungalows for older people on the site.

Residents would be given the option of either moving out of Gowan Lea temporarily and returning to a bungalow or moving permanently into other accommodation.

Although SLDC's management team has approved the report, the final fate of Gowan Lea will be decided at a full council meeting on October 26.

But many tenants are refusing to be uprooted and have sent a petition to South Lakes Housing, which manages Gowan Lea for SLDC, saying they will fight the demolition plans.

"In all developments there are winners and losers, in this case the winners would be SLDC and South Lakes Housing who intend to give their responsibilities away to a housing association. The losers will be some of the most vulnerable and elderly and chronically sick tenants," said 72-year-old resident, David Tyrer.

"Moving house is one of the most stressful things you could do. We have been given priority for the bungalows but I haven't even seen a drawing of them, how could I make a decision at this moment in time? There will be more sleepless nights in this building than there will be at South Lakes Housing," he added.

The Rev Nigel Davies, vicar of St Oswald's Parish Church, Burneside, whose mother is a Gowan Lea resident, has also entered the fray saying he would "take up the cudgels" for all of the tenants.

"Some of the residents have been very tearful about this," he said. "Several are in their 80s and this process has aged them very greatly. I am personally concerned about their peace of mind," he added.

But Tony Whittaker, SLDC principal strategy officer for community housing, said that many factors had been considered before the recommendation to demolish Gowan Lea was made. These included demand for the accommodation in the area, the flats' size and the lack of a lift.

"It is an extremely difficult decision to take but, at the end of the day, we feel that something has to be done. We cannot just leave the flats as they are," he said.

He added that if Gowan Lea was demolished, residents would be compensated and alternative accommodation found. However, he said that tenants who wanted to move into sheltered accommodation would have to leave Burneside.