Residents at Knottingley care home have been given 24 hours’ notice of closure

Ms Hercock said she was told by a social worker that Kath, 74, was not “behaving” so was eligible to be moved the following afternoon.

“No behaviors? My mother is in the advanced stages of dementia, she is extremely frail, has no functional communication or mobility,” she told the BBC.

“She’s locked up – she can’t feed herself.”

Ms Hercock refused to allow the mother to be taken to another home “without training or a care plan” and threatened to contact the police if she was taken without her consent.

The 51-year-old also lodged an urgent referral for adult protection with the council.

“When I got to the house … the staff seemed to be in shock … it was like walking into a bomb site,” said Ms Hercock, who had to make the five-hour journey from Surrey.

“It felt like an emergency.”