PENSIONERS say they are not eating or sleeping because they are so worried about losing their homes.

Bolton Council has sent them letters saying it is thinking about changing the sheltered status of a flats complex on Deane Walk, forcing them to move.

And some residents say the upset is making them ill. Grandmother Hilda Norris, aged 80, said: "I've lived in here for nearly 20 years and I don't want to move now.

"I've hardly eaten or slept since hearing about these proposals.

"I can't think about anything else. It's making me sick with worry."

The residents are now being consulted about the plan. A letter sent by the council's housing department says: "If the changes went ahead, the flat you live in would not be part of a sheltered scheme for older people any more. This means that you would have to move."

The residents would be given suitable alternative accommodation and would get a "home loss payment" of £1,500 plus removal expenses.They would also be given help to find a new doctor. But the residents still do not want to go. Grandmother-of-two Eunice Blackley, aged 68, said: "Why should we have to uproot everything and start again somewhere else? I've spent nearly all of my savings on my home. Nobody wants to leave. It's sickening."

Denis Killian, aged 77, said: "I've got asthma. My doctor's surgery is right near my home and I don't want to move."

And Ivy Wassell, aged 82, said: "I've always been happy here. All my friends live here. I don't want to go."

It is thought that Deane Walk has surplus places and the council is finding it difficult to find occupants for flats in that part of town. A Bolton Council spokesman said: "We have asked residents for their views and no decision will be made until we receive the results."