Title: Grisedale Croft Care Home: decision put back again, and why that matters
Alston Moor Parish Council and the Grisedale Croft Working Group, 19 October 2026
In short
- Westmorland and Furness Council (WFC) has called off the Cabinet meeting planned for Tuesday 27 October. No new date has been set. Nothing has been decided.
- This is the second time the decision has been put back. It was first due on 13 October.
- Both times, WFC has pointed to the recommendations of its own Health and Adults Scrutiny Committee. Those recommendations follow, almost point for point, what the Working Group and the Parish Council put to that committee.
- The minutes of the scrutiny meeting are now published in draft, so the recommendations are on the public record.
- Officers told the committee they have identified "an appropriate property" near the town. We do not yet know which one. If you know, please tell us.
What WFC announced today
On 19 October WFC said that officers and Cabinet members had agreed to defer the 27 October meeting to a later date. It said members need more time to read the evidence in full, including building surveys, financial modelling, information about alternative care, and more than 500 consultation comments. The Cabinet Member for Adults, Health and Care said the extra time would let members consider the evidence alongside the recommendations made by the scrutiny committee.
If you were planning to come to Kendal on 27 October, please do not travel. We will post the new date as soon as it is published.
What the Working Group's work has achieved
Six months ago, the only option WFC put forward was to close Grisedale Croft Care Home and move residents to another building in Alston, if one could be found. There was no site, no costing and no timetable behind it.
Since then, Working Group members and parish councillors have read every document WFC published, made Freedom of Information requests, sent 52 written questions, found the 2017 papers showing two NHS step up and step down beds were set up at Grisedale Croft Care Home when the hospital beds closed, pressed for the NHS to be part of the conversation, and spoke at the scrutiny committee on 23 September.
The committee listened. Here is what we said, and what it then recommended to Cabinet:
- We said residential care must stay on Alston Moor. The committee recommended that Cabinet reaffirms its commitment to keep residential care on Alston Moor, which it called "the clearest and most consistent" message from the consultation.
- We said health and care cannot be planned apart, and the NHS must be involved before anything changes. The committee recommended formal engagement with NHS partners before any alternative goes ahead, including on the former Community Hospital building.
- We said there had been no proper costing of refurbishment. The committee recommended a detailed options appraisal of refurbishment, replacement and alternative accommodation, with capital and running costs.
- We said there had been no assessment of local need, now or in future. The committee recommended a full assessment of future demand on Alston Moor.
- We said the "alternative building" option had no site, cost or timetable. The committee recommended clear evidence that any replacement is identified, deliverable and fully costed before the existing home closes.
- We said the equality impact assessment was written before the consultation closed. The committee recommended that Cabinet receives full equality impact assessments, reflecting the consultation, before it decides.
- We said moving frail residents causes real harm. The committee recommended a Resident Transition and Wellbeing Plan before anyone is moved.
- We said there was not enough time to do this properly before October. The committee recommended that Cabinet considers whether there is enough time to prepare the extra documents and assessments.
On 1 October WFC moved the decision from 13 to 27 October so officers could prepare the extra information the committee asked for. Today it has put the decision back again, saying Cabinet will weigh that same advice.
We are clear about what this means. Without residents, families, staff and volunteers doing this work, the questions would not have been asked, and the decision would most likely have been taken on 13 October on the information WFC had in April. It has not been. Thank you to everyone who has written, responded, attended and spoken.
Nothing has been decided, and a delay is not an answer. But the decision will now be made on fuller evidence, and that is what we asked for.
The "appropriate property"
At the scrutiny committee, councillors asked what would happen if there were no extra beds in Alston. The Director of Capital Delivery and Assets replied that officers had been able to identify an appropriate property near the town, and that details would be given to Cabinet.
This is the first time WFC has said a site exists. We do not know which property it is, how many beds it would have, what it would cost, or whether it is suitable for frail older people and people with dementia. The minutes also record that the "four beds" mentioned in the consultation reflect current occupancy, not future need.
Do you know which property is being considered? If you have heard anything, please tell the Parish Council directly, in confidence, rather than posting it online. A guess shared publicly could wrongly name someone's home or business.
We will also be asking WFC in writing.
What happens next
- Cabinet: no new date yet. We will post it as soon as it appears, with the papers.
- Speaking at Cabinet: the deadline of 21 October was for the 27 October meeting. We are checking how requests to speak will work for the new date.
- The evidence: the consultation reports, all responses and background papers are on WFC's Grisedale Croft consultation page. Paper copies are at Alston Library.
- Our questions: we are still waiting for written answers to the questions raised at scrutiny, and to our letters of 25 August.