Facing closure

Queen Mary House, Glasgow Dunselma, Fenwick Mayburn House, Loanhead Leslie House, Fife Rubislaw Park, Aberdeen St Andrew's Day Care Centre, Dunbar Cameron House Day Services, Inverness Older People's Project, Edinburgh Deeford alcohol rehabilitation unit, Aberdeen

The convenor of the Kirk's board of social responsibility, the Reverend Jim Cowie, said: "We very much regret the need for these decisions but cannot continue to subsidise what is a public authority responsibility.

"Central and local government should be utterly ashamed of their financial failures in this direction."

The Kirk says that extra funding for care home operators which came into effect this year does not go far enough.

Last year a National Review Group report recommended a weekly payment rate of up to �360 for those cared for in residential homes.

However, that rate will not be introduced until April 2003.

The Kirk's social work director Ian Baillie said the Scottish Executive had decided to increase payments to �295 a week from this month - �65 less than the agreed figure.

Central and local government should be utterly ashamed of their financial failures

Reverend Jim Cowie

"This has resulted in a substantial increase in the projected deficit for another year which the board simply cannot afford to bear," he said.

"The cuts in services announced today reflect that."

Elizabeth Duncan, Scottish spokeswoman for the charity Help The Aged, said the closures would be a huge blow to those elderly people affected.

She said: "It's always traumatic for old people to be moved.

"If this is the case then every step must be taken to ensure that these vulnerable old residents and their families are fully consulted.

"They should be put in touch with all relevant agencies about the move and a full assessment of their needs should be taken. "

'Drastically wrong'

Age Concern Scotland director Maureen O'Neill said: "We are appalled but not surprised by these closures.

"The Church of Scotland has long said that they are operating under extremely difficult financial pressures, and it seemed almost inevitable that they would have to take drastic action at some stage."

And she added: "Cosla and the Scottish Executive must make plans now to ensure that homes in the voluntary sector have a secure financial future.

We are appalled but not surprised by these closures

Maureen O'Neill Age Concern Scotland

"If they do not, they will find themselves facing a severe shortage of residential care places, and a major crisis of care."

Health minister Malcolm Chisholm described the decision as "deeply regrettable".

He said the Scottish Executive had made "unprecedented" levels of extra cash available to the care home sector.

"I hope that the general increase will help to stabilise the care home situation so we don't lose any further capacity and may encourage extra capacity to open where that is necessary and appropriate," he said.