Already squeezed by the demands of work and looking after their own children, many find it difficult to devote the time needed to elderly relatives.As a result there are concerns that elderly people living alone are becoming increasingly neglected.Tom Tuite A UK lotto millionaire accused of defilement of an under-age Irish teenage girl has been charged with 44 additional offences including rape, sexual assault and possession of child pornography.

A desire to maintain independence for as long as possible combined with spiralling care costs and worries about the quality of the care that is on offer mean families are looking for alternative ways to look after elderly relatives.After a month in her new home, Kath Lowe couldn’t be happier.Whether she is baking bread in her state-of-the-art kitchen or relaxing in her sitting room, enjoying the view, the 81-year-old grandmother says the move has given her a new lease of life.‘It has a nice ambience, a lovely outlook and it is my own space,’ she says.And in many cases the form this neglect takes is not physical — but emotional.Earlier this year a study claimed Britain’s older generations are suffering an ‘epidemic of loneliness’, with almost three-quarters now describing themselves as lonely.But best of all is the fact that her son Andy is only a stone’s throw away. For widow Kath has just moved in to a purpose-built granny annexe erected at the end of his garden.All bi-fold doors and cedar cladding, it was built at a cost of £67,000 and boasts a bedroom, bathroom, kitchen and lounge.