A CANCER survivor whose front door was broken down by police while he was in hospital was not contacted by the force to rectify the situation until almost a week later.

Ken Eggleton, 74, returned from three weeks in hospital after his bladder was removed, to find his door had been broken down and boarded up by police, who were checking on his condition.

They had left a note on his sofa requesting him to write a complaint to North Yorkshire Police (NYP) headquarters, but a visit promised to Mr Eggleton on the Wednesday never happened.

Mr Eggleton said: “They haven’t been in touch at all, it’s not on. They should have contacted me, at least should have phoned me.”

Mr Eggleton’s son, Nick, said: “We can’t blame the neighbours for being worried, we can’t blame the police for checking it out, but to leave it to a 74-year-old to write a complaint to police headquarters is ridiculous. He’s not up with email and he’s ill. He’s not well from the stress of everything and he’s not thinking straight.

“The level of communication and the attitude and action, or lack of action, from NYP has caused unnecessary and considerable mental and emotional stress to my father. He’s not sleeping because of this and his doctor is concerned about how this will affect his recuperation.”

A spokesman for North Yorkshire Police said the officer tasked with contacting Mr Eggleton had already finished his shift on the Tuesday and was on a rest day on the Wednesday, November 28. Nick and the officer missed calls from each other before contact was made last Monday.

He said: “We will be addressing the situation as a priority as NYP does not wish to cause Mr Eggleton any undue concerns.

“We are disappointed that Mr Nick Eggleton feels that North Yorkshire Police has not given his father and himself the appropriate level of service.

“We will be offering to meet Mr Eggleton to discuss his specific concerns.

“If the support we have given has caused Mr Ken Eggleton any undue stress this is deeply regretted and we hope that the resolution that is now in place will allow him to move on and make a full recovery.”