THE start of a string of controversial cuts at Westmorland General Hospital began this week, with the closure of six beds on Ward 11.

The 24-bed acute medical ward is the first unit being axed as part of the University Hospitals of Morecambe Bay NHS Trust's review of services, and will continue to be scaled down by six beds per week.

The review will culminate in the closure of the Kendal hospital's coronary care unit and means emergency patients from across South Lakeland will be sent further afield for treatment to Lancaster or Barrow.

The trust, which has to meet a series of break points' and get approval from the Cumbria and Lancashire Health Overview and Scrutiny Committee (OSC) before it can push ahead with the cuts, has maintained that sending patients to the Royal Lancaster Infirmary will improve patient safety and quality of care.

But campaigners fear lives will be put at risk because of increased ambulance journey times. As well as organising several mass protests in the past, they are now proceeding with a legal bid to persuade the UHMBT to go back to the drawing board.

In October, the UHMBT was forced to do a U-turn and reopen Ward 11 after it shut the 24-bed unit suddenly, without consulting with Cumbria Primary Care Trust. It then said it would begin closing the ward gradually during March.

Meanwhile, nursing staff at the hospital have raised concerns that wards at the hospital are being under-staffed - partly due to staff seeking alternative employment because of the uncertainty surrounding WGH's future.

Those fighting to retain services in Kendal fear if the OSC is asked to approve the closure of a ward that is under-staffed - and effectively unsafe - they will have no option but to agree.