60,000 older people forced to sell their homes

More than 60,000 homeowners are being forced to sell up each year to pay for a place in a care home, Counsel and Care reports. It says that as many as many as half of those needing care were being forced to pay the £500 a week costs from their own pocket. Anyone with savings or property worth more than £22,250 must pay their own bills, and councils have legal powers to force those in care homes to sell their houses to meet the fees. The cost of care for the elderly last year was £12 billion.