THE fate of a York residential home for the elderly could hang in the balance at a planning meeting tomorrow.

The future of York Rise home is in doubt after owner Tony Hall-Jackson admitted he could close it if he is given planning permission for two ambitious schemes.

He has asked City of York Council for permission to change the use of the Heslington Road building.

The first proposal is to convert the home into 26 study bedrooms for students, the second to convert it into five houses with garaging. Both are recommended for approval.

Mr Hall-Jackson said approval would not necessarily mean the home's closure, but it would mean he would be making a decision on the future of York Rise "in the near future".

He said: "I am keeping my options open. If I receive planning permission then I will have to make a decision. I have got to address the situation and that might be to carry on.

"Running a home is very tough at the moment. I have ten residents at the home, but space for 24. The future of the home is in doubt."

Meanwhile, new figures have revealed one in every 100 operations in North Yorkshire is being cancelled at the last minute for "non-clinical" reasons.

The county's cancellation rate is better than the national average of 1.46 per cent, according to Department of Health figures. But the statistics mean that 791 patients in the county faced the agony of having their operation cancelled on the day it was due to take place, in the year to March 2001.

Tory health spokesman Dr Liam Fox blamed bed-blocking caused by the closure of care homes for the high number of cancellations.

Health Minister John Hutton said the vast majority of operations were going ahead as planned, but the Government was committed to improving performance further.

Updated: 12:02 Wednesday, February 13, 2002