Around 400 pensioners sell their homes each week to pay for social care, according to the latest research.
 

The figures, compiled by the charity Independent Age, show that 21,120 owners had to sell their homes last year, compared with just 11,880 in 2000. The charity says the latest figures indicate the scale of a crisis in which people with more than £23,250 in savings, including their property value, is refused state support.