THE owner of an East Lancashire nursery at the centre of a £100,000 cash probe is to quit the area.

Elaine Eastham is moving on after selling her after-school club in Whalley to a Blackburn concern.

Mrs Eastham's nursery at Brockhall Village was forced to close after the alleged disappearance of the cash from her bank account.

More than a dozen staff lost their jobs and a month's wages when Elaine's Childcare Centre closed at short notice after banks refused to extend her credit.

The loss of the money is being investigated by police and a report prepared by accountants is awaiting submission to the Crown Prosecution Service.

Ribble Valley businessman and Brockhall Village owner Gerald Hitman failed in an attempt to take over the nursery.

And Mrs Eastham's School's Out and Holiday Club in Accrington Road, Whalley, has now been acquired by Oscar Bear's, of Blackburn, subject to approval by Social Services. Tearful Elaine said her life had been wrecked by the disappearance of the cash and she would now be quitting the area.

"There is no chance of me going back to Brockhall and I have sold the Whalley business. I want a fresh start. This whole affair has taken quite a big toll on me. It took me 10 years to build up my business. It was my life and now it has all gone. I would like to stay in childcare in a management capacity, but it definitely won't be in the Ribble Valley," she said.

Mrs Eastham opened the Whalley centre in 1990 and, after developing a waiting list, took the lease on the property in Brockhall Village in 1995. The two centres catered for up to 79 children aged from three months.

Police are investigating claims that the missing cash was misappropriated from Mrs Eastham's bank account.

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