A Leeds pensioner who was evicted from the home she'd known for years is hoping she will be able to stay in her new place for the rest of her life.
Linda Elsworth, 73, was one of the tenants of the Sugar Hill estate in Oulton who was left devastated and stressed as they were told they'd have to leave their tight-knit community. The tenants on the estate thought the application to bulldoze it by landlord Pemberstone for years - but many eventually had to move out last year.
After a year of stressing and struggling to find a new home, Linda finally managed to get a new place and after a lot of alterations, was able to move into it in July 2022. Six months on, there's still stuff to do, but she's finally starting to feel settled.
Linda told LeedsLive: "I feel much better about things now. When I moved here I was depressed and out and hadn't been able to get to the hairdressers or the dentists in three years.
"I had this horrible two-tone ponytail and some of my teeth were missing. I've since been able to get that sorted out with the money we got from Pemberstone.
"I've got my short purple hair and my teeth back - it's amazing how much more confident I feel. And it feels absolutely fantastic to be here now too.
"This is my forever home now. There's no way I'm moving again - I feel like I finally have security now. The rent is paid and it's starting to feel how I want it to."
Leeds City Council have got Linda into a council owned property on the John O'Groats estate in Rothwell, not far from her old place. It's been specially adapted for Linda's struggles with her mobility, which was one of her biggest worries when she was looking for a new place.
Linda had also been worried about finding an affordable property for her state pension and housing benefits. The council owning her house means her benefits can go straight to the rent without her having to worry about it.
When LeedsLive first met Linda in November 2021, she was supposed to be out of her home in two days but had nowhere to go. She said at the time: "My hair's started to fall out and my blood pressure is up and down all over the place. I'm not the healthiest person at the moment anyway. It's not helping - the fact that I've got to try and pack and move stuff around.
"I don't know what to do. When Wednesday comes around and I'm going to have to say ''I'm sorry I'm not moving because I've got nowhere to go'."
Over a year on and after months of stress, she's settled, and starting to sort through her boxes to make the new place her own. She's been able to move all her favourite purple accents and owl statues over with her without having to let them go as she feared.
"It's still a work in progress here and I'm a bit stuck for storage space but I feel as if I've fallen on my feet, " Linda added. "It's only small but it's perfect for me.
"It's wonderful not to be stressed about where I'm living anymore. But I do miss my neighbours from the estate as we're all split up now, and I've had to move doctors from the one I had for 20 years and knew me.
"Thankfully my best friend Hazell hasn't had to move far away so we still see each other all the time and talk on the phone. I'm hoping once I've got everything sorted out I can host a bit of a reunion of everyone here with a barbecue in the summer."
Linda originally viewed her new home in March 2022, but it needed a lot of alteration before it was ready for her to move in. She had to wait until July so carpets, wallpaper and wiring could all be changed and insulation put in.
The Government allowed developer Pemberstone permission to bulldoze Linda's estate back in 2020 after Leeds Council previously denied permission and residents fought the proposals. Residents like Linda started being issued eviction notices in 2021, with the first move out dates for December of that year.
It ended up taking a lot longer for many of the families on the close-knit estate to find affordable places to live, and most didn't move out until later in 2022.
Pemberstone said at the time that a survey of the homes had found there was structural damage threatening their stability. The developer provided the tenants with a payment equivalent to around six months rent to help them move out.
Pemberstone said at the time eviction notices were issued: "We firmly believe that the redevelopment of the estate, which would include the creation of new affordable housing, is the best option to secure its long-term housing future.""
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