A 67-year-old woman has hit out at the government after being forced to find her fourth nursing home in three years.

Joan Mortimer is set to move into a new nursing home in Morecambe, Lancashire, at the end of July.

Her current home will close in two weeks, with the owners blaming new rules and low fees for the decision.

I feel I've moved enough

Joan Mortimer

It will be the third time the growing crisis in the nursing home sector has impacted on Mrs Mortimer.

Hundreds of homes throughout the UK have closed in recent years. Owners have blamed poor rates of return and increasing bureaucracy for their decision to sell up.

Forced to move

Mrs Mortimer, who suffers from cerebral ataxia, moved into her first nursing home in 1999.

Her first stop was a residential care home in Lancaster. However, she was forced to move just one year later after the owners decided they could no longer afford to stay in business.

A stay in a second home lasted just nine months after its owners also decided their operation was uneconomical.

I think the government is sitting on a time bomb that is really going to explode

Robert Wilson, The Sands Nursing Home

Last year, Mrs Mortimer moved to Maybern residential home in Morecambe. But after 13 years in business, its owner Bernie Simpson has decided to close.

"It's an accumulation of things," she told BBC News Online. "There have been a lot of new regulations. I'm fully behind those but somebody has to pay for it."

Ms Simpson has had to find alternative accommodation for each of the 13 residents, including Mrs Mortimer, in her home.

She said telling the 67-year-old woman that she had to move was terrible.

"I was dreading having to tell her, her more than anybody because it is such a traumatic experience having to move and she has had to do it three times already.

"She was so upset. She thought this home would be her final home. She is still depressed and down."

Hanging on

Mrs Mortimer is moving to Sands residential home in Morecambe. Its owner Robert Wilson said that while the home's future looked promising it was not guaranteed.

"We are hanging on by our fingernails," he told BBC News Online. "We are lucky because we are a relatively large home with 136 beds. Because we have more fat on us, we have been able to hang on longer."

He has warned that the increasing regulations from the government and local authorities and the low fees being paid are causing problems for many homes.

"I think the government is sitting on a time bomb that is really going to explode.

"Unless the situation improves, there is going to be a huge backlog of people stuck in hospital with nowhere to go."

Mrs Mortimer is not looking forward to the move.

Speaking to BBC News Online, she said: "I have to get to know new people. I feel I've moved enough. I just hope that they won't close."

She said the new rules on nursing homes were forcing her to move. "They have brought in new rules and that is why the homes are closing."

Complex problems

A spokeswoman for Lancashire Social Services said the problems being faced by care homes are complex.

"Reasons for private home closures vary, with low occupation rates and low income levels sometimes factors in the decisions made by home owners to close."

She added: "There are national issues about fee levels for private care homes and discussions are on going about this on a national level."

The Department of Health said extra money has been made available to boost care homes.

A spokeswoman said: "We have already taken action to maintain capacity in the care home sector to ensure that older people get the choice of a care home place when they need it."

She added that new minimum standards for care homes are not designed to put homes out of business.

"The majority of care homes already meet the national minimum standards and it is not the intention of the standards to close down good quality care homes."