STUDENT nurses were celebrating today after hospital bosses went back on their plans to evict them from their homes in January.

Harold Musgrove, chief executive of the Worcestershire Acute Hospitals NHS Trust, has apologised and extended nurses' notice - for another month.

But he has offered them cash help to meet rent increases when they move out of hospital quarters and into private homes.

Now the nurses are breathing a sigh of relief and say the Trust's decision has taken the pressure off.

Last month, the students appealed to the Evening News and formed an action group when they were told accommodation would only be available to student doctors at Worcester's new £95m hospital.

They were staggered to find they had just six months to find alternative housing.

Last week, Elgar Housing Association stepped in and offered to buy properties near the new hospital to rent to the nurses on a house-sharing basis.

The trust has given the scheme its blessing, and the nurses and Elgar are pleased that the extended notice period will give them more time to organise things.

"This is the best news for us," said student nurse Tanya Knowles.

"It gives us a breathing space and means that the pressure is off."

While the students pay £69.11 a month for their halls accommodation at Ronkswood, Elgar Housing estimates it would charge each nurse around £39 a week to share a four-bedroom house.

"We will have a meeting to see exactly how many of us will be taking up the offer from Elgar and then we can let them know, but having the extra time makes it easier for everyone," Miss Knowles added.

"We were shocked by the letter from Mr Musgrove but very pleased - it was a positive shock.

"We weren't expecting it. We don't have to panic over the summer holidays or Christmas and we've all decided that we're going to have an excellent Christmas party here."

"We are pleased to confirm the monthly rates for accommodation for the student nurses during the remainder of their training remain the same as their counterparts across the rest of the county," added Janet Marie Clark, trust spokeswoman.

"The contact we established with the Elgar Housing Association has been followed up by the student nurses as a way forward to finding alternative accommodation."