Council building to reopen following flooding

Voreda House in Penrith houses Westmorland and Furness Council services

A council office will reopen to the public on Monday after it was closed due to a flood.

Voreda House in Penrith, Cumbria, was shut on Wednesday after an overnight leak caused significant damage to the first floor and parts of the ground floor.

The building, which houses services for Westmorland and Furness Council, only opened in 2024 - in a project that overran by three years and was more than three times over budget.

The first floor will remain off-limits but the reception area, customer interview rooms and Patterdale Room, where public meetings are held, were unaffected. The second floor will also be reopened for staff.

The Liberal Democrat-run authority thanked staff and contractors for their efforts to help get the building reopen.

A spokesperson for the council said: "We would like to apologise to our residents and customers for any inconvenience caused by this enforced closure but we are pleased to be able to reopen in-person services.

"This is an initial response to get us back open and available to the public again, and we will continue to review in coming weeks as we assess the damage and schedule for repairs."