Brain injury rehab could close over lack of clients

The ten-bed rehabilitation centre in Keswick, for people with brain injuries, could close

A rehabilitation centre for people with brain injuries could close because of a lack of clients.

The Lake District Calvert Trust, which runs the 10-bed Calvert Reconnections unit in Keswick, announced proposals to close the centre and said consultations with employees had opened.

The charity said the centre had not been attracting enough clients on a consistent basis to make it financially sustainable, adding it had been "severely impacted" by the pandemic.

Its two other centres, Calvert Lakes and Calvert Stables, which help people with disabilities take part in outdoor activities in the countryside, will continue to operate with some restructuring.

The Calvert Reconnections centre is a specially adapted residential care centre for people with acquired brain injury and is staffed by a clinical therapy team.

Chair of the Board of Trustees Martin Mullin said the proposals would help ensure the long-term sustainability of the charity.

"These changes are being proposed to ensure that the Lake District Calvert Trust operates for many years to come," he said.

Specialists working at the centre including physiotherapists, speech and language therapists and psychologists

The charity said the planned opening and establishment of Calvert Reconnections in 2020 had been severely impacted by the pandemic.

Since it opened, the centre has suffered from volatility in numbers of participant bookings and, since March 2024, there has been a significant reduction in occupancy, the charity says.

The charity added the trustees were confident the proposed new structure of the Lake District Calvert Trust would be "financially sustainable".