A decision to close a north Cumbrian care home will be further scrutinised at a special meeting next week.
Cumberland Council’s executive agreed to close Moot Lodge in Brampton because of several issues, including that the building was no longer fit for purpose.
Now, its decision will be looked at by the authority’s people overview and scrutiny committee on Wednesday.
The executive said that the home, in Market Place, had a reduced occupancy and a limited capacity to meet diverse and evolving needs of residents as well limitations relating to facilities on multiple levels and access to safe outside space which could not be resolved through capital investment.
However, a public consultation saw almost 90% of residents in favour of keeping the facility open.
The decision has been called in for scrutiny by councillors Mike Mitchelson (Brampton, Conservative), Helen Davison (Belah, Green Party), Mike Johnson (Thursby, Conservative), Andy Pratt (Millom Without, Conservative), Geoff Mitchell (Wetheral, Conservative), Roger Dobson (Corby and Hayton, Lib Dems), and John Mallinson (Houghton and Irthington, Conservative).
The reasons behind the call in were:
- The executive not giving proper consideration to the responses in the public consultation and whether or not the process was meaningful or just a paper exercise with minds already made up.
- Removing council care home facilities from a key service centre with an increasing ageing population which will result in residents having to be located in either Carlisle or Longtown resulting in visiting difficulties due to lack of direct public transport links;
- Not to have a properly costed refurbishment plan as an alternative consideration and no discussions with the community to see if they could assist in making the building more fit for purpose.
- Concerns about the future of the current building in the centre of the town.
The scrutiny committee has three options:
- Refer the matter back to the executive, for reconsideration setting out in writing the nature of its concerns;
- Refer the decision to full council if the decision is contrary to the policy framework contrary to or not wholly consistent with the budget;
- Not refer the matter back to the exectuive, in which case the decision shall take effect from the date of this meeting.
The overview and scrutiny committee may also make other recommendations as a result of the call-in to relevant bodies, which shall be considered after a decision has been reached.
