Kentmere Unit at Westmorland General Hospital set for revamp after funding secured

The Kentmere Unit at Westmorland General Hospital was closed in April last year as it was not set up to provide a 'Covid-safe environment' for patients and staff.

The trust that oversees the in-patient facility has revealed the ward is to be refurbished to reduce the risk of Covid transmission and to 'address safety aspects highlighted by the Care Quality Commission'.

MP Tim Farron said the closure of the unit had left some people in South Lakeland in 'limbo' and called for it to be back open as soon as possible.

A spokesman for the Lancashire and South Cumbria NHS Foundation Trust said: “We are currently developing a strategy for the continual improvement of our clinical services, including community services and in-patient wards, across Lancashire and south Cumbria.

"We will be engaging and asking for stakeholder views on the shape of future service developments and investments.

“We are committed to providing the highest quality care and support in partnership with the communities we serve.”

The spokesman said: “We took over mental health, learning disability and autism services from Cumbria Partnership Foundation Trust in south Cumbria in October 2019, and since that time we have worked hard to improve them.

"We continue to invest in healthcare settings and staff, as well as upgrading and modernising wards and facilities so that we can improve the service and experience for service users and their families."

Tim Farron, MP for Westmorland and Lonsdale, expressed concern over the continued closure of the unit.

CONCERNS: Tim Farron

“We need to see the Kentmere ward at Westmorland General back open as soon as possible so it can provide mental health support for those in need," he said.

“We rightly wouldn’t accept this kind of gap in service for people with problems with their physical health, so we absolutely should not accept it for mental health either.”