Consultation on the future of Applethwaite Green Care Home in Windermere

Overview

Update: Decision on the future of Applethwaite Green care home moved to 27 October Cabinet

Westmorland and Furness Council statement, Thursday 1 October

Following a meeting of the Westmorland and Furness Council Health and Adults Scrutiny Committee on 23 September, it has been agreed that the decision on the future of Applethwaite Green and Grisedale Croft care homes will now be taken at an additional meeting of the Council’s Cabinet on Tuesday 27 October.

The decision was to have been made of at the Cabinet’s October meeting on 13 October. The move was agreed to allow more time for council officers to prepare additional information for Cabinet in accordance with the recommendation by the Health and Adults Scrutiny Committee.

Last week the committee heard statements on the consultation process and the future of both homes from members of the public. They then considered reports on the results of the consultation on both care homes, and asked questions of senior officers.

At the end of the meeting, the committee agreed several recommendations for each home, including compiling further evidence on the costs of each option and future demand for residential care, and completing Equality Impact Assessments.

The full minutes of the Scrutiny meeting will be published shortly on the Health and Adults Scrutiny meetings page.

As with the Scrutiny meeting, members of the public may address the 27 October Cabinet meeting.

If you wish to make a statement or ask a question, you must request to do so by emailing jackie.currie@westmorlandandfurness.gov.uk or adam.moffatt@westmorlandandfurness.gov.uk, or by writing to the Committee Services team no later than 11.59pm on Wednesday 21 October, providing the question you wish to ask or the statement you wish to make.

If you wish to present a petition, the request to do so and the petition must be received by 11.59pm on Tuesday 13 October.

For more information visit the council’s Public Participation Scheme page.

The public consultations into the future of Applethwaite Green and Grisedale Croft closed on Wednesday 19 August after 14 weeks.

The reports on the results of the consultation, and associated consultation documents, are published below.

Printed versions of anonymised consultation responses and correspondence, and the Healthwatch and N-Compass reports, can also be viewed on request at Kendal Town Hall reception.

Cabinet reports and appendices for the 27 October meeting will be published on the council’s Cabinet meetings page on Monday 19 October.

Applethwaite Green consultation documents

The Applethwaite Green Consultation Report was published on 16 September ahead of consideration at the 23 September meeting of the Westmorland and Furness Council Health and Adults Scrutiny Committee.

The report summarises consultation responses and correspondence received over the consultation period.

On this page we have published the full anonymised consultation responses, along with other reports and background documents.

Consultation responses and correspondence

Survey responses from relatives or friends of residents

Survey responses from residents of Applethwaite Green

Survey responses from current staff of Applethwaite Green

Survey responses from members of the public

Direct responses and correspondence from the public

Survey responses from organisations

Applethwaite Green Community Group correspondence

Correspondence from Tim Farron MP

‘Option 1.5’ proposal from Peter Lord

Independent reports

Healthwatch report – Applethwaite Green

N-Compass advocacy report – Applethwaite Green and Grisedale Croft

Westmorland and Furness Council documents

Applethwaite Green Consultation pack 1, 15 May 2026

Applethwaite Green Consultation pack 2, 26 June, 2026

Question and Answer document, 16 July 2026

Applethwaite Green consultation update communication

Cabinet report, April 2026

Freedom of Information disclosures

The Freedom of Information document contains council disclosures during the consultation period in relation to Applethwaite Green. Some disclosures contain multiple additional appendices of data. These can be accessed by going to the Westmorland and Furness Council FOI disclosure log and searching for “Applethwaite Green” or other keywords contained in the individual FOI request.

Consultation now closed: The future of Applethwaite Green care home

This consultation is about the future of Applethwaite Green Care Home in Windermere.

We know the valued place Applethwaite Green has in the community and the longstanding role the home has played in supporting local people for more than 50 years. The Westmorland and Furness Council home is rated “Good” by the Care Quality Commission and we are proud of the quality of care our current and past staff have continued to provide.

We are looking at the future of Applethwaite Green because the building is costly and not fit for the future of modern care. Applethwaite Green has 27 rooms, but resident numbers have declined to 16, making operating costs per resident very high.

No decisions have been taken about the final outcome. The purpose of the consultation is to gather views, understand impacts, and ensure that any future decision is informed by the experiences and priorities of those most affected.

We understand that even the start of a consultation on options for the future may be worrying for residents, families, and staff. These are people’s homes and places of work, not just buildings, and we are approaching this with care, openness and respect.

This consultation is about listening. We want to hear directly from residents, loved ones, staff and local communities so that any decision we make is informed and focussed on people’s wellbeing, dignity and safety.

Throughout the consultation period, residents and families will receive individual support, and staff will be kept fully informed, with trade unions engaged as part of the process. The council will ensure that any future changes prioritise safety, continuity of care and quality of life.

Following the consultation period, all feedback will be carefully considered and the Director of Adult Social Care will make final decisions later in 2026.

Thank you for taking part in this consultation. You will find more details below about the background to this consultation, our wider vision for the future of care, and how to take part in the consultation and find out more at community information events.

Information about the consultation will be updated on this page throughout the consultation period.

If you have any questions or you or someone you know needs additional support to take part in the consultation please email care.consultation@westmorlandandfurness.gov.uk or call  0300 373 3301

Nikkie Phipps, Director of Care Services
Adult Social Care, Westmorland and Furness Council

How to get involved in the Applethwaite Green consultation

We welcome and would like to hear your views. This is a public consultation and we welcome responses from any individual or group with an interest in this issue.

We will gather feedback in a number of ways, to ensure that everyone has the opportunity to have their say, including:

• An online consultation information page and an online consultation survey (the survey link is at the foot of this page)
• A paper consultation pack and survey
• Information drop-in events in the community
• Support for residents and their families to take part, with advocacy available where required.
• Consultation with potentially affected staff and Trade Unions

Online consultation page and consultation survey

This online consultation information page and consultation survey will be updated with information and relevant documents throughout the consultation period.

To complete the survey go to the "Share your views" link at the foot of this page.

On the survey you have the chance to indicate your preferred option for Applethwaite Green and to comment further.

Please note the online consultation survey is open until 19 August and further relevant information may emerge during the consultation and through community engagement and questions. Therefore you may wish to submit your consultation response later in the process.

Updating, replacing, or withdrawing a response

It is possible to start your online response and return to it later, right up to the closing date, but once you have submitted your response, that response cannot be amended.

If you wish to update or replace an earlier response please submit a new online response and answer the survey question which asks whether you wish to retain and update your earlier response, or completely replace your earlier response with the new one.

If you wish to completely withdraw a response from the consultation, without submitting a new one, please email care.consultation@westmorlandandfurness.gov.uk

If you have any questions or concerns please email care.consultation@westmorlandandfurness.gov.uk

Questions and Answers

Before taking part in the consultation please read our Questions and Answers document, which provides answers to questions already raised during the consultation.

Printed consultation information and consultation survey

Printed versions of the consultation information and survey will be available to pick up at community venues in the Windermere and South/Central Lakes area, including:

• Windermere Library
• Ambleside Library
• Kendal Library

Paper surveys can be returned to any of the library venues or posted to the council without a stamp to:

Applethwaite Green Consultation, Freepost WESTMORLAND AND FURNESS COUNCIL.

Information boards

Consultation information boards in Windermere Library and Ambleside Library will be updated with printed versions of any new or updated information that is posted online during the consultation period.

Community information drop-ins

The council will be holding a series of drop-in information sessions where people can find out more about the consultation, speak individually to council officers about the proposals, or be supported to fill in the survey on paper or online.

Residents of Applethwaite Green and their families

We are committed to involving all Applethwaite Green residents and their relatives at the centre of our decision-making. If you are someone who will be directly affected by the proposed options then you should already have been contacted directly by our Adult Social Care staff.

If you have not yet been contacted, then please let us know using the contact details above/below and we will be in touch as soon as possible to explain the support available.

All residents and their family members will be offered advocacy support from independent, professional advocates. We want to make sure that everyone affected has the chance to fully participate in this consultation.  The advocacy organisation will produce a report for the council setting out their findings.

The council will also consult directly with staff and other local stakeholders.

As a resident or family member you can of course also let us know your views in the same way as all other members of the public, via the online survey, the printed survey, or by emailing care.consultation@westmorlandandfurness.gov.uk

We look forward to receiving your views and comments.

What happens next

This consultation has now closed

The results of this consultation were presented to a meeting of the Westmorland and Furness Health and Adults Scrutiny Committee on Wednesday 23 September. A final decision will be made at a meeting of the council's Cabinet on Tuesday 27 October.

Please email care.consultation@westmorlandandfurness.gov.uk if you have any questions about this consultation.