AN ELDERLY housebound widow queried why the cost of her care was so high, a jury in a £500,000 fraud trial at Bradford Crown Court heard.

Witness Hazel Gray told the court she first went to Audrey Hammond's home at Ings House in Cracoe, near Skipton, as a companion but took up a caring role when her health deteriorated.

Miss Gray, who looked after Mrs Hammond between 2010 and January 2012, said she became quite a close friend of the pensioner. The widow loved to talk about her life, including how her father had been Mayor of Keighley.

Miss Gray said Mrs Hammond used to ask her why her carers were costing her so much.

"She seemed unable to do anything about it," said Miss Gray.

Mrs Hammond did not want to go into a care home and her niece had promised her that she would not have to.

Miss Gray said she asked her to consider it and Mrs Hammond became quite interested when she got her a booklet about a care home.

But "it did not go down very well" with Wendy and Mandy, the court heard.

Wendy Bell, 57, of Greenside Lane, Cullingworth, her daughter, Lisa Bell, 30, also of Greenside Lane, and Helen Banks, 42, of Howbeck Avenue, Riddlesden, deny conspiracy to defraud Mrs Hammond, between February 14, 2010, and September 25, 2012.

Wendy Bell pleads not guilty to two further fraud allegations.

The jury has previously heard that Amanda Carroll, 44, of Park Avenue, Shipley, had pleaded guilty to conspiracy and two charges of fraud at an earlier hearing.

Linda Mynott, 60, of Garforth Road, Keighley; Caron Gilbert, 33, of Red Holt Crescent, Keighley, and Alice Barker, 59, of Raglan Avenue, Keighley, had admitted the conspiracy offence.

The trial also heard yesterday from Susan Blakeley, a carer who was there when Miss Gray found cheque stubs said to feature Wendy Bell's name in a box in a bedroom at Mrs Hammond's home.

Mrs Blakeley told the court: "The amount on those stubs was a lot more than we were getting paid."

Prosecutor Stephen Wood had earlier asked her: "Did you notice any names that were receiving a lot of money?"

She replied: "Yes, I think it was Wendy."

Mrs Blakeley, a nurse for about 36 years, came out of retirement to start work as a carer for Mrs Hammond in "February or March" 2006, working one shift a week on Friday nights. She also covered shifts when other staff were ill or on holiday.

When pressed further about the discovery of the cheque stubs, Mrs Blakeley said: "Wendy told me she got a car allowance."

Defence barrister James Lake asked Mrs Blakeley about the car allowance, and she replied: "Wendy said because she does the shopping she got the car allowance."

The trial continues.

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