I want to use my Claudia's house to help people in need

Property could become safe space or women's refuge

- LUCY THORNTON

THE mum of missing chef Claudia Lawrence wants her daughter's house to be used for a good cause.

As she shows me around the empty terraced cottage, Joan Lawrence says she has already spoken to City of York Council about what she could do with the property.

Joan says: "I would like the house to be used for a charitable purpose.

"Maybe it could be used by someone in need, whether it be a family who are homeless, or someone who has had to escape their own home. It could be used as a safe house for someone who has suffered domestic abuse.

"I am in talks with the council regarding options and how the house can be put to best use.

"It could be even used as a community project to help people in need."

She adds of the house: "It's so haunting coming back in but I'm tied to it now. It takes so much out of me every time I walk through the front door. It's a nightmare but I have to come every two weeks to comply with the building's insurance. Every time I come here, it's heartbreaking."

Claudia was 35 when she was last seen on March 18, 2009. She worked in kitchens at the University of York's Goodricke College from 6am to 2pm.

Later that day she told her mother in a phone call she was at home and planned to have an early night.

Just like Joan's heart, that home in the Heworth area of York has been desolate ever since. As we enter, Joan picks up a letter from the doormat.

It's from the NHS to "the occupier".

It brings back painful memories for Joan, of TV licensing authorities chasing missing Claudia for payment.

Joan sadly points out damaged plasterwork and Claudia's broken belongings, including picture frames, a vase and a mirror.

Cobwebs hang from the ceiling all over the house which appears stuck in a timewarp. A toastie maker is still lying on the kitchen counter.

"So much has happened in 15 years," she says. "It's a nightmare.