Councillors condemn closure of hospital beds as Lancaster infirmary battles service stress

Lancaster County Council members have called for a public consultation in response to a proposed plan to close a 24-bed ward at the Royal Lancaster Infirmary.

The decision, made by University Hospitals of Morecambe Bay NHS Trust, was made to help cut costs. It is also closing 18 beds at the Furness General Hospital.

During the final quarter of 2025, Royal Lancaster Infirmary declared it had reached level four in its Operations Pressure Escalation Levels (OPEL), which sees the hospital incompetent to provide “comprehensive care” to its patients.

Reaching this highest level of alert comes after months of warning from University Hospitals of Morecambe Bay NHS Trust, detailing the “stress, demand and pressure” that are on the hospital’s services.

The Infirmary then cancelled any non-essential meetings to prioritise “patient-facing activities,” to ensure full use of all non-Emergency Department options, and maintain good communication with the public about the service’s status.

Since the end of last year, the OPEL of the Royal Lancaster Infirmary has seen numerous fluctuations between OPEL levels 3 and 4, though still emphasising that de-escalating a level doesn’t indicate an end to the strain faced by the hospital.

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As a measure to prevent such stress and oscillations of tensity, the difficult decision was made by the Trust to cut 24 beds at the Royal Lancaster Infirmary to save £443,000 in the next financial year, alongside the claim that people’s, “care will be better served out of a hospital environment” rather than within what currently stands as a rehabilitation ward.

Lancaster County Councillors have spoken out against this decision earlier this month, and say the further implementation of “virtual beds” is not a viable solution or replacement. These “virtual beds” are supposedly able to allow for patients to receive hospital-level care in the comfort of their own home, with the Trust aiming to increase the number of such beds from 25 to 73 by next month.

Green Lancaster County Councillor Hamish Mills, who chaired the committee meeting, made clear that he values the opinions of the public on this matter, and disagrees with the Trust that the same quality of care can be emulated at home.

Mills goes on to say that he feels, “worried that cuts are being made following pressure from central government and that service provision for people in Lancashire and Lancaster isn’t being paid attention to”.

Up to date news on Royal Lancaster Infirmary, and other hospitals in the North Lancashire area, can be accessed here.

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