A GRIEVING mother who wants to be moved from the estate where her son was murdered has vowed to continue her battle despite a setback.

Theresa Cave, who is demanding demolition of the flat where her son died, has been told she is unlikely to be rehoused before February.

Mrs Cave has won the support of Redcar MP Vera Baird, who held talks with the housing association which owns the houses in Burnmoor Close, in the town.

She presented a petition with 680 signatures supporting the demolition of the flats, where Chris was killed.

Last week, Sean Matson was jailed for life for murdering the 17-year-old at his best friend's home in June.

A drunken Matson, of Langthwaite Walk, Redcar, went to the flat in Burnmoor Close, and demanded drugs.

He later returned with a knife and stabbed Chris.

Mrs Cave, whose has a three-year-old son, Thomas, said: "While I have breath in my body, I will fight for that flat to be removed. I have even offered to do it myself.

"Whenever I go past it, I burst into tears. There's no one living in it. Why can't it come down?"

She said she was desperate to leave the area.

Housing group Coast and Country offered Mrs Cave a house near Rutland Close, in Redcar, which she refused because it was near Matson's home.

She said: "I don't want my young son to have to live on yet another estate with drug problems and gangs."

Ronnie Harris, Coast and Country operations director, said talks with estate residents were scaled down during the trial.

She said: "We are sympathetic to Mrs Cave's needs but she is asking for Redcar, our most popular location, and it is difficult to rehouse people at this time of year because no one wants to move before Christmas."

"We can't just pull down the flats because there are still people living there and they haven't said they would be happy about moving out.

"We will come back to the community with our proposals in February 2004."

Ms Baird said: "I have had assurances from Coast and Country that they are keenly looking for a new place for Theresa and that she was being given some priority."

She said she had been told the flat would be left boarded up for the time being.