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Also in this week's edition:
Councillors, officers and stakeholders gathered this week to celebrate the £2.3 million investment in Eskdale House Residential Care Home, Longtown. The official opening event showcased the features of the recently refurbished care home, with works focussing on dementia care and sustainability.
Councillor Carni McCarron-Holmes, Cumberland Council Chair, and Councillor Lisa Brown, Cumberland Council Executive Member for Adults and Community Health said a few words as part of the event. They thanked all involved and celebrated the improvements in facilities, accessibility, and sustainability, emphasising a commitment to compassionate care and independence for residents, and reaffirmed Cumberland Council’s dedication to innovation and inclusivity in care provision.
Following speeches and a ribbon cutting guests were invited to take tours of the building to observe the new and improved space and features.
The refurbishment of a 21-bed care home includes various upgrades and improvements. These encompass enhancements to bathrooms, such as new rise and fall baths and improved ensuite facilities, as well as more spacious bedrooms and a complete redecoration of the property. Additionally, laundry and kitchen facilities have been redesigned to support infection control measures.
Staff welfare facilities have seen significant changes, including the addition of a staff shower room, changing area, and a dedicated break room.
Outside, extensive development has taken place, including the installation of new access ramps, balustrades, raised flower beds, and the relocation of the oil tank to create level access to the garden area. The refurbishment also involved installing new boilers, increasing insulation, and implementing LED lighting to improve thermal efficiencies and reduce energy consumption.
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Three of west Cumbria’s fabulous foodie businesses are coming together for a cheese and wine extravaganza at this year’s Taste Cumbria festival in Wigton.
The Barista Café, Wine & Tapas Bar is the location for the event which takes place on Friday 19 April from 7pm. It will play host to the cheesemakers from Torpenhow Dairy and the wine specialists from Shill’s of Cockermouth who will be sharing their wares and their expertise.
Just 30 tickets are available, priced at just £20 each. Guests will be treated to wine and cheese, as well as a charcuterie board from The Barista team.
This is the opening event for the Taste Cumbria food festival which takes place in Wigton on Water Street car park from 10am until 5pm on Saturday 20 April. It will be packed with producers’ stalls, live music, hot and cold food, and family entertainment.
There is also a young entrepreneurs’ market and a free Q&A with the Sunday Times bestselling author Helen Rebanks who will be chatting to ITV’s Kate Walby about her life and her book, The Farmer’s Wife. This event rounds off the festival on the Saturday night at Cornerstone Methodist Church on High Street from 6.30pm.
Book your wine and cheese tickets or reserve a place for the Helen Rebanks event at www.visitallerdale.co.uk/things-to-do/taste-cumbria-wigton/
The Taste Cumbria events are organised by Cumberland Council
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With just a few days to go until the voter registration deadline for local elections on 2 May, anyone wanting to vote must make sure they are election ready.
The deadline to register to vote is midnight on 16 April. Voters can apply online at gov.uk/register-to-vote. It takes just five minutes.
Voters have a range of options – they can vote in person, by post or by appointing someone they trust to vote in their place, known as a proxy vote. The deadline to apply for a postal vote is 5pm on 17 April. The deadline to apply for a proxy vote is a week later, 5pm on 24 April.
This May, voters will need to show photo ID to vote at a polling station. This is a new requirement, introduced by the UK Government’s Elections Act. To find out which ID you can use in the polling station, visit the Electoral Commission website.
If you do not have one of the accepted types of ID, you can apply for free ID online or by completing and submitting a paper form to your local authority. You must apply by 5pm on 24 April, to be able to use the Voter Authority Certificate on 2 May.
Voters in Cumbria will be going to the polls in May to elect a new Cumbria Police Fire and Crime Commissioner (PFCC). This page has details of the candidates.
All the local town and parish council elections in the Cumberland area due to be held on 2 May are uncontested. There are some local elections being held on this date in the Westmorland and Furness area.
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From a galaxy far, far away comes an absolute must see for fans of Star Wars and the silver screen.
A stunning May The Toys Be With You exhibition opens at The Beacon Museum, Whitehaven on Saturday 27 April and is one of the UK's finest collections of vintage Star Wars toys and original cinema posters.
Back when the movie Star Wars broke box office records in 1977 no one could have predicted that the merchandising would go on to earn even more than the film itself. The toys of Star Wars took the world by storm and became the must-have playthings for an entire generation. From 1977 - 1985 an estimated 300 million action figures were sold, allowing children to re-enact the adventures of Luke Skywalker, Princess Leia and Han Solo.
May The Toys Be With You is both a celebration of the now highly collectable vintage toy line and also of the iconic design work and art of the Star Wars movies. From X-Wing Fighters to lightsabers, these fantastical designs have fired our imaginations and stamped their place on our cultural landscape.
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A successful Teenage Market is set to return to Carlisle later this month.
After a highly successful launch in April 2023 Carlisle’s Teenage Market soon became a must attend event for Cumberland’s young entrepreneurs and performers.
In total 72 traders attended all three markets held last year plus 14 incredible performances took place.
The market, organised by Cumberland Council, returns to Carlisle’s city centre on Saturday 27 April.
Supported by the High Street Taskforce, the Teenage Market is a fast-growing nationwide initiative set up by teenage brothers Joe and Tom Barratt in Stockport to transform our town and city centres with the creativity of young people.
The Teenage Market offers young people aged between 8 and 25 years old the opportunity to gain experience of selling and marketing their own products. Young performers can also have the chance to take part in the day with performance opportunities available throughout the afternoon. It is completely free for young people to attend the Teenage Market, with gazebos, tables and sound equipment being provided.
Our fantastic Operation Respect events will happen across our area this summer.
The community get-togethers – which include advice, activities, food and commmunity clean-ups – are led by our Local Focus Hubs.
£55 million resurfacing contract awarded to local firm
We have awarded a three-year contract with local firm, DSD Construction Limited, valued at up to £55 million.
After inviting bids through the electronic procurement portal, The Chest the council awarded this substantial project to local company, DSD Construction Limited, a family-owned business rooted in Carlisle since its establishment in 1993.
The comprehensive resurfacing program includes all areas under Cumberland Council's region. Under this framework agreement, valued at up to £55 million for three years, the council will allocate at least £9.5 million for the first year for various tasks, including road resurfacing, installation of new road markings, upgrading ironworks, pothole repairs and routine maintenance.
Works in Bootle
In order to carry out improvement’s safely, we will need to have a temporary evening closure. The area of work can be seen online at: https://one.network/?GB138092044 with works taking place from Monday 8 April for four weeks. From Monday 15 April to the end of the scheme, works will take place from approximately 7pm to 5am. A temporary road closure will be taking place, with a signed diversion route. Access for emergency vehicles will be maintained at all times.
A597 New Bridge Road, Northside, Workington - works completed early
Our Highways team have been resurfacing the the bridge in Workington this week and managed to complete the project ahead of schedule.
An array of fun posters designed to showcase the Cumbrian dialect and the personalities of the people of Maryport have gone on show in the town.
This artwork was inspired by the people of Maryport, their quirks, their humour, and their straight-talking attitude. Part of a project called Jus’ Git On Wid It, the creative programme was funded by the Government’s UK Shared Prosperity Fund.
The new artwork is on display now at the temporary Maryport Maritime Museum at the junction of Senhouse Street and Curzon Street.
We would like to thank the following people for their involvement in the Jus’ Git On Wid It project: Stefan Escreet at Ragged Edge Productions, Karen Thompson at Yan Tan Tethera Creative, Stuart Eve, Christine Slater, Joanne Hill, Mitchell Hill, Jason Renwick, Barbara Markham, Angela Sibson, Amy Austin, David Malcolm and Maria Hardy-Sims.
And more good news for Maryport’s promenade
The next phase of improvements on Maryport’s promenade is underway.
Construction teams have started work on Sea Brow Gardens and the curved landscaped area to the north of the former toilet block which is, this Summer, destined to become Maryport’s new café and beach shop.
The railings at Sea Brown Gardens are in the process of being replaced. Landscaping all around this area is now being enhanced. The pathways are being widened and resurfaced and new seating and bins being installed. The raised flowerbeds will also be cleared and repaired.
The work is being carried out by Carlisle-based Kirkaldy & Roe Ltd and is being made possible by the Government’s Future High Streets Fund.
Work started on the Oldside site at the Port of Workington this week - to establish the ground conditions ahead of future development.
We ate managing the project which aims to use the location to create a clean energy and logistics hub. Around £4.5 million of funding is being provided by the UK Government as part of the Workington Town Deal.
The plans for Oldside’s clean energy and logistics hub is a long term plan to improve this key coastal site. It will allow additional trade and cargo handling at the Port of Workington, with the potential to generate rental income from property lettings at Oldside.
Improvements to a leisure facility for Cleator Moor have taken another step forward with the submission of a planning application for the site.
Healthy Town is one of four projects that make up the Cleator Moor Town Deal and aims to provide the community with a modern, multi-purpose and inclusive sports facility at the Activity Centre.
The full planning application, submitted to Cumberland Council, sets out the benefits of the improvements to the site which include:
- Four court sports hall.
- Multipurpose studio space.
- New fitness suite
- Changing facilities.
- A new base for Copeland Occupational & Social Centre (COSC) - who provide dedicated outreach support to disabled people and groups.
The facility improvements are one of a programme of projects supported by the UK Government’s Town Deal.
Cleator Moor Town Deal secured an award of £22.5m from the Government's Towns Fund along with an additional £18.4m from match funders.
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The transformation of a former bank into a new arts and enterprise centre for the community of Millom and Haverigg has taken another step forward.
Planning permission has been granted for the £2 million scheme.
It will see work get underway at the property in St George’s Road to create a range of facilities including a cafe, maker’s market, small retail spaces, workshops and studios.
It is part of the Reactivating Heritage Buildings project brought forward by Millom Town Deal which was awarded £20.6 million from the Government’s Towns Fund to help the town and its communities to thrive in the future. An additional £8.7 million was secured in match funding.
The key highlights of the Arts and Enterprise Hub include:
- Some extensions to the property which are not in keeping with its architectural style or the setting of the building within the town centre conservation area would be demolished.
- The ground floor would then become home to a cafe, maker’s market and small retail spaces showcasing the products of those operating from four start-up business spaces on the first floor and three workshops, studios and shared studio space on the second floor.
Work is now underway to appoint an architect for the scheme
A temporary artwork has been installed in Seascale tthis week.
Chronos Kairos, 23:59, an artwork by British artist Ryan Gander was installed on Seascale Water Tower.
The artwork is made from machined stainless steel and explores the complexities and experience of time. The sculpture is based on a clock design but does not move and appears to have been made twice. Alongside its own charm, the proximity of the water tower to the coastal railway enables the artwork to be placed close to the train station, another site of schedules and time-keeping.
Chronos Kairos, 23:59, is one of a series of artworks being unveiled to offer additional points of interest along the Cumbrian Coast as part of Cumberland Council’s coastal programme funded by the UK Government’s Coastal Communities Fund and Sellafield Ltd’s Six Social Impact Multiplied programme.
Please be advised that there are no changes in the waste collection dates for the coming bank holidays in May – we will be working as usual on the bank holidays.
Please ensure that your bins are placed out on the regular pickup date.
For further information, for all collections dates – please go to: https://bit.ly/CumberlandRefuseCollections
Cumberland Council and Westmorland and Furness Council have confirmed - in a letter to the UK Government - their commitment to joint working across their council boundaries.
A letter, signed by the Leaders of each council, has been sent to Parliamentary Under Secretary of State at the Department for Levelling Up, Jacob Young.
The councils’ letter is in response to an offer of support from the government to begin to explore devolution for the area. Both councils have welcomed the offer and have confirmed that they are happy to meet with members of the Levelling Up team to explore the level and type of support available.
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