A review of a care home’s future in an isolated Cumbrian community has sparked outrage – but the council behind it has pledged to provide an alternative building if it was financially viable.
Westmorland & Furness Council said it was reviewing its Grisedale Croft home in Alston as the building was no longer fit for purpose.
Grisedale Croft has 13 bedrooms. The council said there had been declining and limited occupancy over the last six years. Currently there are only three permanent residents.
The building is now over 50 years old and has exceeded its original operational life.
However, it said, in Alston and the surrounding area, there was little alternative provision available.
The council stressed that no decision had been made.
The authority’s cabinet met this week and said its preferred option was to provide alternative accommodation in a suitable building in the local area if one could be acquired.
The cabinet has agreed to start a formal consultation on all options on the home’s future.
Cllr Patricia Bell, cabinet member for adult care, said: “We recognise there is little alternative provision available.
“The cabinet has agreed to start a formal consultation on all options on Grisedale Croft’s future with a preferred option to provide alternative accommodation in a suitable building in the local area, if one could be acquired, and it is financially viable.”
The authority is also reviewing the future of Applethwaite Green Care Home in Windermere, a27-bed home with 15 permanent residents and a consultation has been launched.
A report to councillors said Applethwaite Green Care Home’s building was functionally obsolete and financially unsustainable and the home had been operating at a reduced capacity of residents due to longstanding recruitment challenges, high agency reliance and an inability to meet modern regulatory standards.
The director of adult care will make final decisions later this year.
- Reports about the reviews of the care homes’ futures were accidently published in the public domain last week. The issue was discussed behind closed doors because it relates to financial or business affairs and was not meant to appear in the public part of the agenda on the authority’s website. It means the public or press are not allowed to hear the debate.
