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Remembrance Day 2025

13/11/2025

 
A huge thank you to everyone who attended the Remembrance Parade and service on Sunday 9th November 2025: the Burnside Brass Band and Sea Cadets who played, all the organisations and individuals who attended, Rev Richards for leading the service and members of public who braved the rain to pay their respects.

Particular thanks must go to Cllr Adrian Legge for his hard work organising the event and to the Lions for providing the sound system.

​Finally, thanks must go to Sunbelt Rentals who generously organised the road closure as a mark of respect to those who served.

Banking Hub Request for Windermere Refused

31/10/2025

 
In 2024 the last remaining bank in Windermere & Bowness closed. In October 2025 the final banking service offered by Barclays at Windermere Library is also closing. The Town Council were approached by a concerned older resident about the possibility of getting a Banking Hub for Windermere. This is a shared banking space where limited services are offered by a range of different banks on different days.

The process involves an application to the Link Scheme which the Town Council did. 

Unfortunately, Link is only interested in maintaining access to cash. Since there is a Post Office, Cumberland Building Society and several cash points in the vicinity they decided Windermere did not qualify. We tried to appeal based on the difficult journey to an actual bank branch in Kendal for people with limited mobility. Again, we were turned down. Sadly, this has now exhausted the appeals process.
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If problems accessing banking services are impacting you then writing to your bank or local MP would at least flag up the problem which no existing schemes currently seem to address.

Report from the visit of David Allen Cumbria Police & Crime Commissioner to Windermere & Bowness Town Council

29/9/2025

 
On 13th August 2025 The Town Council organised a meeting with Cumbria's Police & Crime Commissioner Dave Allen to discuss local concerns around policing in our area.

The Town Council consulted residents and created questions drawn from concerns expressed by Councillors, residents and a community Facebook Survey results showing residents’ key concerns (152 votes): 21% illegal parking, 19% fly camping & littering, 15% drugs, 15% antisocial behaviour linked to alcohol, 13% lack of a local police presence on our street, 10% antisocial behaviour linked to vandalism, 7% lack of a local police station.

The response to our questions are shown below.
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Attending were: David Allen, Cumbria Police & Crime Commissioner (Note: Police are operationally independent of the Police and Crime Commissioner. The Police and Crime Commissioner employs the fire service staff, but not the police. So, the Police and Crime Commissioner cannot commander the police to act but provides oversight), Police Inspector Ross Woods (South Lakes Area) and Chief Superintendent Dave Pattinson - Westmorland and Furness Area Commander.

Community Safety and Crime
1. What is being done to tackle anti-social behaviour, especially during tourist season?
e.g., late-night noise, public drinking. The issue is of such a scale due to changing demographic of visitors and concentration of licenced premises in Bowness that for the 2nd year W&BTC received grants to fund Street Support Officers (SSOs) - local security staff - to patrol on summer evenings. (See separate Data sheet)
​Local officer, Sgt Becky Hunter reported a change in the number and capacity of licensed premises in Bowness and change in demographics, the high number of holiday lets so visitors can stay out later than in the previous days of guest houses and hotels predominating.
 
There has been national recognition and funding for the issue of violence against girls and women. Funding has been put towards the Bowness welfare hub on Saturday evenings (statistically the busiest night for incidents) staffed by special constables and local licenced premises through Bar Watch who provide funding for a Tactical Security staff member.
 
The Police appreciate the work the Town Council has done organising the Bowness Street Support Officers and the useful intelligence they provide. Inspector Woods noted the positive working relationship between Tactical Security Staff and the Police particular with the Welfare Hub.
 
Operation Regulate is a dedicated police operation focused on the night time economy. There has been work with Licensing on underage drinkers, including test purchases. An in-depth look is made at all new licensing applications Operation Vigilance is also focused on violence against girls and women, and involves plain clothes special constables.
 
Operation Enhance started 18 months ago. There's been a 25% decline in serious violence in the area. The police adjusted the criteria so Bowness could be included in operation this year recognising that the additional police presence had been effective.
 
Police are working with homes and businesses to use captured CCTV such as ring doorbells. Comparing our CCTV to the national database, it enables shoplifters from other counties, for example, to be identified.
 
The Town Council explained their long standing request to Westmorland & Furness Council Licensing Department from April 2023 for a Cumulative Impact Assessment (CIA) for Bowness and requested the support of Police and P&CC in moving the topic forward so a decision could be made by the Licensing Committee.
Dave is going to raise the Bowness Cumulative Impact Assessment at the Community Safety partnership meeting.
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2. How are police addressing drug-related issues in the area? Reports from SSOs of a rise in drug related incidents particularly drug driving, blatant approaches to hospitality staff from visitors wanting to buy drugs and finds of drug paraphernalia in the toilets of bars and pubs.) Police continue to utilise a number of ways of addressing drugs and drug related issues. There has been an increase in policing activity and visibility in the Windermere and Bowness area. There has been a significant uplift in the number of stop searches taking place when people have been suspected to be in possession of controlled drugs. This mirrors a wider pattern in the force with around 20% of these being positive searches with relevant items located.
All Roads Policing and Neighbourhood Police officers are trained in the use of roadside drugs wipes which are routinely used on drivers committing offences or driving in an anti-social manner. Arrests for drug driving now outnumber drink driving arrests.
Community Intelligence is key to driving Police activity in relation to drug supply. In the last 12 months there have been at least four Warrants and property searches carried out by Police at addresses in Windermere and Bowness.

Policing Visibility and Resources
3. 
Despite action to recruit more staff across Cumbria, in Windermere & Bowness there is still a lack of resources so staff are frequently called away to incidents outside our area. How many staff and of what level should we have in Windermere and how many vacancies are there and how will they be filled? There is a lack of a visible presence locally from both PCSOs and Police Officers.  
Dave Allen agrees that police on the streets are important. £20 million was taken out of Cumbria Police's budget in the preceding years before he took over. People need to report everything. If they don't, they won't get staffed if the police don't know about it. That's absolutely crucial.

There are a total of 1393 police, including CID in the area, they've been granted 1.7 million in funding for an additional 46 neighbourhood policing team members. There were currently 59 across the county in January 2025 on the streets. The funding came through in April and 46 people will be trained and on the streets in January 2026. There are new PCSOs and civilian staff in the back office to free up police from the paperwork. Police recognise the importance of community intelligence, evidence and partnership with the licensing authority.
 
4.What action is being taken to mitigate recruitment challenges due to the high cost of housing in areas like Windermere in relation to Police pay?
Housing costs aren’t an issue for staff. While there are roles that still need filling, recruitment is going well.
 
Retention is a key issue, as neighbouring counties such as Lancashire and Northumberland are also recruiting, so some staff have transferred for personal reasons. Places like BAE, Sellafield, Heysham and United Utilities are paying bonuses in relation to recruitment and retention so some Police Officers are lost to these alternative careers. Cumbria Police are moving office staff to the front line, changing recruitment to people with more life experience, not just a degree in order to improve retention of the staff they recruit and train.
 
Traffic and Road Safety
5. What is being done to tackle illegal parking and dangerous driving in the town? Illegal parking is a key area which impacts the daily lives of locals. The places where it occurs on a sunny weekend are very well known but rarely enforced in relation to the scale of the issue - despite Glebe Road having the most parking tickets issued by W&FC for the second year in a row. Traffic, road safety, enforcement and prevention are important. The Police work with Westmorland & Furness Council Highways team on issues such as yellow lines on Rayrigg Road. Illegally parked car owners have complained there are no signs, but they aren't needed because the rules around double white lines are clear. This is enforced regularly, for example on the 30th of July, 97 tickets were issued in on one stretch of Rayrigg Road.

Tourism and Seasonal Pressure
6. How is policing adapted during peak tourist seasons and events? Residents feel services are stretched or deprioritised. Police anticipate and plan ahead with their resources. Higher levels of resources per shift are put in over the summer with things like Appleby Horse fair and events in Ulverston and Windermere. August 12th, the day before the meeting, was the busiest for a long time.
 
14 to 15 million people visit our area, and Police are not funded for them, just for our declining population. However, incidents are increasing, and Police are also funded by incidents as well as by population, which is why it is so very, very important to report everything.

7. Are tourists being held accountable for offences like littering, fly camping, or disorderly conduct? There seems to be no one with the power or staff to deal with the issues around camping and BBQs which occur in the evenings and weekend, this is extremely frustrating to residents who see people getting away with such behaviours and leaving a mess which they clean up.  
Dave Allen recognises that this is an issue of serious concern to residents. Offenders can be charged with disorderly conduct if it is reported. Littering and wild camping are not necessarily a police matter if on private property. Volunteers are cleaning up and are understandably getting fed up.
 
The strategic visitor management group is looking at the issues around enforcement and information education. Cumberland have a public space protection order and enforcement team, but it's only 100 pound fine per group. They have introduced some restorative justice, such as getting a group of young people to do litter picking in this week who were found making a mess camping the previous week.
 
There needs to be both education and enforcement. Without public space protection orders, it would be civil trespass. The festival culture is making people think that fly camping and littering is acceptable behaviour and they need educating that it is not.

8. Who is responsible for enforcing the existing rules and potential future extended PSPO? Without enforcement there is very little hope that tourists will take any notice of the PSPO given that they are already ignoring the no fires and no camping signs now. The PSPO is the responsibility of Westmorland and Furness Council. A proposed PSPO which covers these issues is currently subject to public consultation which is requirement ahead of any implementation. Enforcement is primarily the responsibility of the Council but powers can be delegated to the Police when it is in place.
 
Youth Engagement and Prevention
9. We have seen the positive work done locally with the mini police in our primary schools. What programmes are in place to engage older young people and prevent youth crime or disorder? The area near Windermere Library had been a target for antisocial behaviour such as a fire in the public toilets we run and anti-Semitic graffiti near the Lake District Holocaust Project in the library building. Dave Allen encouraged Councillors to spread the word to youth clubs and other groups about the Police and Crime Commissioners Community Fund. It is funded by money recovered from Criminals operating in the County. They offer grants up to £2500 to youth groups to support engaging activities for young people. The local Sea Scouts recently got funding for equipment, for securing their base at Millerground and for life jackets, helmets and paddles.
 
Communication and Transparency
10. How will you ensure the public is kept informed about crime trends and police activity in Windermere? Including live updates such as road closures due to traffic accidents or during extreme weather like the snowstorm of 2023 which trapped many drivers in our Town. The Neighbourhood Policing Pledge has been launched stating that every locality in South Lakes will have a named beat officer. Police are organising biannual meetings via CALC. There is a newsletter for South Lakes police that people can subscribe to. Crime statistics are available on the Cumbria Police Force website. Social media is also used and has recently been very positive. The South Lakes area Facebook page has a lot of followers and tries to provide a mix of relevant themes.

11. How can residents better report non-emergency concerns like fly camping and be sure they are taken seriously? At the moment, the Town Council gets lots of reports as people don’t know whether it is the police, W&FC, National Trust or LDNPA they need to report to. Having a single point for all tourist nuisance issues would be welcome, particularly if there was anyone to respond to the issues. It is understandable that there is confusion around who to report matters to given that depending when, where and to what extent issues are occurring can change who is responsible for dealing with them. The ability for the public to report concerns is being actively discussed at the Strategic Visitor Management Group with a view to ensuring that any reporting process is made as easy and accessible as possible.

Diesen Blasser Gruppe & Alpenhorn performance Sunday 8th June.

3/6/2025

 
Everyone is welcome to attend this FREE performance at the Glebe Bandstand in Bowness on Sunday 8th June 2025.

Windermere Town Twinning Association are delighted to support the visit from our Twinned Town of Diessen am Ammersee in Germany of Diessen Bläsergruppe and Alphorns.

This performance of traditional German music will be played on brass instruments and wooden Alphorns
They will be performing at the Glebe Bandstand Bowness-on-Windermere on Sunday 8th June 2025: 10am – 12:30pm

VE Day 80 Photo Gallery

9/5/2025

 
At 1:30pm approximately 150 people attended the War  Memorial for a poignant service led by Rev. Richards and to view the art installation led by the Bowness & Windermere Community Care Trust. Students from St Martin and St Mary Primary School, St Cuthbert's Catholic Primary School, Goodly Dale School and Windermere School worked with the artist Donna Campbell to create giant poppies. While local knitters created over one thousand poppies which the Backhouse family stitched onto fabric to cascade off the war memorial.
At 6:30pm the church bells rang out across the community to celebrate peace.
Later that evening, under a beautiful clear sky there was an amazing community turn out for our VE 80 day lighting of the Beacon at Orrest Head summit.
Mayor Hallatsch and Councillor Legge gave short speeches to commemorate the event and at precisely 9.30pm our Beacon was lit and for the first time with no rain or issues
Many thanks to Windermere Convenience store for providing the wood and firelighters and to everyone who came to remember VE day 80 years ago including a councillor and residents who attended the original celebrations as children!
Also in the evening the beautiful Poppies were lit up in the War Memorial gardens. Bowness & Windermere Community Care Trust thank you, they are truly amazing!
Out of all the Beacons lit last night from the top of Scotland to the Channel Islands, we're fairly sure ours was the most spectacular!

VE Day 80 Commemorative Events - 8.5.25

24/4/2025

 
oVE80 Arrangements
Windermere & Bowness Town Council is proud to join the nation's celebration of VE-Day 80 - the 80th Anniversary of the end of the World War II in Europe. 
Thursday 8th May 2025

1:30pm - War Memorial, Lake Road, Windermere: There will be a short service led by local clergy. (If it is wet weather, the Ladyholme centre has kindly allowed us to use their main hall)
There will be an art installation at the war memorial to mark the event. It has been created by local residents and school children coordinated by the Bowness and Windermere Community Care Trust. Resident are invited to view the artwork and spend some time in quiet contemplation in the beautiful war memorial garden.
6.30pm  -  Church bells 'Ring out for Peace' across the town.

9:20pm  - Orrest Head Summit Beacon Lighting
We warmly welcome you all as we hold our Beacon ceremony on the summit of Orrest Head in Windermere. The ceremony will begin at 9.20pm on THURSDAY 8TH MAY and our Beacon, one of the official chain of hill-top Beacons throughout the nation, will be ignited at 9.30pm.
Note: Matson Ground Estate are participating in the national beacon chain and lighting their own small beacon on their land at Brantfell. However, the main public event is on Orrest Head.

Orrest Head is now accessible to everyone including our less mobile residents, and this event is always very well-attended with a lovely atmosphere. We look forward to seeing you all on the summit!
IMPORTANT...Please remember that road access is for residents' vehicles only, please wear appropriate clothing and footwear for the weather conditions and carry a torch if you will be descending after dark. Please follow the directions of the Town Council event Marshals who will be wearing hi-vis vests.
Saturday 3rd May 2025
10am – 1pm Marchesi Centre, Holly Road, Windermere Coffee Moring and VE80 Anniversary Celebration. 12 noon toast of Remembrance & celebration followed by a singalong. £2 entry includes refreshments: [email protected]
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If you have any questions please contact the clerk on [email protected]
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Longlands Recreation Area Redevelopment Community Survey

30/1/2025

 
The Town Council took over the trusteeship of Longlands Recreation area from SLDC and are now planning to apply for grant funding to redevelop the area currently used as a children's play area. In order to support the bid, the Town Council would like to find out what our residents would like to see there.

The terms of the trust mean it must be used as a recreation area for leisure activities open to residents and visitors, so it can't be built on even for housing or parking. There is limited funding available so suggesting something like a swimming pool is unlikely to be possible.

Please email your ideas to [email protected] , post to Windermere & Bowness Town Council, Langstone House, Broad Street, Windermere, LA23 2AB or join the Town Council’s Facebook page and vote online here.
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Mill Beck Water Testing 2024 Report now published

9/1/2025

 
The Town Council is pleased to present the finished report into the results of the water testing which they carried out in Mill Beck in 2024. For six months over the summer the stream was sampled at various points and the water tested.

Mill Beck flows from small tributaries on the farm land surrounding School Knott, through the most built up part of the village along Queen's Park, down to Baddeley Clock, through Sherriff's Wood, under the A592 and out into Lake Windermere by the Jetty Museum.

As this report explains, the information we gathered combined with data collected by the Environment Agency show evidence of significant pollution in the stream. It is highly likely to be entering the beck within the urban section of the watercourse. Further testing is needed to identify the source. In the meantime we would recommend caution for anyone coming into contact with the water in Mill Beck.

The Town Council's Water Quality Advisory group are very grateful to the support of Ambleside Action for a Future in planning and interpreting the testing program and Matson Ground Estate for providing practical support and a donation to enable the testing of the Mill Beck upper reaches.

To read the report click here

Millbeck Water Testing Results Presentation Event

2/12/2024

 
​In response to residents concerns about water quality the Town Council set up a Water Quality Advisory group. Mill Beck was chosen to investigate as it is the largest stream that flows from farmland in the hills through the heart of the residential area and out into the lake. Since April, Windermere & Bowness Town Council have carried out weekly citizen scientist water testing at multiple sites on Mill Beck with the support of Matson Ground estate who sampled the upper reaches of the stream.
We have been helped by Ambleside Action For a Future group (who carry out their own testing in Lakes Parish). One of their members, Tim Boden, has been helping us to interpret our results and has kindly offered to give a presentation to the public explaining what our results show and to answer questions.
Everyone is welcome to come along to the Council Chamber at Langstone House on Broad Street at 5:30pm on 11.12.24. The building is fully accessible.
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Wildlife Sculpture Trail Opens in Elleray Woods

18/9/2024

 
Orrest Head and Elleray Wood formed part of the Elleray Estate which was formerly owned by Arthur Henry Heywood. In 1902 his widow and daughter gave Orrest Head in trust to Windermere Council to be held "for public walks or pleasure grounds".
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In 1943 most of Elleray Wood was given to the Council under similar terms by other members of the family. A small part at the northern end is owned by South Lakeland District Council but leased to the Town Council and managed as part of the Community Woodland. In more recent years another section of woodland was gifted to the Town Council by the owners of Elleray Bank. It had been closed off for many years and was in need of work to make it safe and encourage biodiversity.
In 2012 the Town Steward Gary Hancox suggested putting a track through the woodland to enable people to visit it safely while still keeping the majority of the land for the wildlife. With the support of the Town Council, Gary has worked tirelessly for many years facing major challenges such as storm Arwen along the way. As the trail took shape Cllr Lisa Greasley, Lead of the Orrest Head and Elleray Woods Advisory Group (OH&EWAG) got the idea of installing chainsaw sculptures of native creatures along the trail. Talented sculptor Sorin Iosipescu took on the challenge and has produced ten beautiful sculptures to look out for along the trail. In addition there are bird and bat boxes made for us by pupils of the Lakes and Windermere Schools and three little mice. Two new benches have been donated by the Wilson and Place families.
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The sun shone beautifully for the grand opening helping the Town Steward forget his many months of working in the woods in the pouring rain this year. The ribbon was cut by the former Clerk to the Town Council Julie Wright and former Lead of the OH&EWAG Dr Helen Jones. The attendees, who included Town Councillors, Town Council staff and  local residents, enjoyed having the first look at the new trail.
While there is a fully accessible route to the summit of Orrest Head, the new track involves some steps and  steep and uneven ground so is not suitable for wheelchairs or strollers. The Town Council would like to remind visitors to keep to the track both for safety reasons and to keep the wider habitat undisturbed. The site is host to a wide range of wildlife including deer, bats, owls and maybe even a red squirrel. It definitely pays to sit quietly and see what creatures come along. The Town Council hopes that this trail will help locals and visitors alike, particularly children, learn to appreciate the range and beauty of the creatures that make our woods and mountain tops their homes.
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D Day 80th Anniversary Beacon , Orrest Head

7/6/2024

 

D-Day 80th Anniversary Commemoration

6/6/2024

 
​Windermere lad who fought on D Day remembered.
Last autumn, the Town Council put out a request for pictures of family members who had fought on D Day eighty years ago. Kathleen Strickland of Windermere was kind enough to get in touch with the story of her brother-in-law Alan Strickland. It seems very appropriate that we think of him and our other brave soldiers as we light the beacon on the summit of Orrest Head so near where he grew up.
Alan Strickland was born in Christopher North’s Cottage at the foot of Orrest Head. He was the third child and oldest son of Arthur and Annie Strickland. By the start of the war the family had moved to 21, Havelock Road. Alan worked as a gardener at Mawson’s. By 1944 he had signed up and joined the 8th Battalion Kings Liverpool Irish. The battalion was chosen to be part of the 7th Beach Group to land with the 3rd Canadian Division on Juno Beach.
The conditions encountered by these young soldiers as they came ashore was one of almost indescribable horror. Alan was 19 years old.
The 8th Battalion suffered such losses that day that it was subsequently disbanded. Alan was posted to the East Lancashire Regiment. He was wounded while fighting in Normandy. After he recovered, he was then posted to the 9th Battalion Cameronians (Scottish Rifles). He crossed the Rhine with them, and Lance Corporal Alan Strickland was killed in Germany on 30th April 1945 just a few days before Germany’s surrender on May 8th.
Kathleen had never met her brother-in-law, as he died many years before she married his younger brother. But she, and the rest of his family never forgot the sacrifice he made. So, on the 80th Commemoration of the D Day landings we too remember the sacrifice made by Alan and all the others who served the cause of freedom then and now.
Everyone is welcome to join the Town Council at our D Day Commemoration on the summit of Orrest Head by 9pm on Thursday 6th June. The Mayor’s tribute is at 9pm followed by the lighting of the beacon at 9:15pm.
(Picture from the Westmorland Gazette 1945)
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Bowness Street Support Officers Pilot Scheme Starts Friday 3rd May 2024

1/5/2024

 
For some time now Windermere & Bowness Town Council have been concerned by antisocial behaviour in Bowness. They have worked with partner organisations such as Westmorland & Furness Council, Cumbria Police and Windermere and Bowness Bar Watch to gather data and look at strategies which may assist in reducing incidents of public nuisance and help both residents and visitors to feel safe.
A grant from Westmorland & Furness Council has been awarded to fund a trial of Street Support Officers for central Bowness and the Glebe over the evenings of the busiest summer weekends during bank and school holidays this summer. The two experienced and professional support officers will be provided by Tactical Security, who worked successfully with the Town Council to provide Covid Marshalls during the pandemic recovery period. They will be there to help the public and will welcome the opportunity to engage with residents and visitors. Additionally, we hope they will provide a deterrent to antisocial or illegal behaviour and provide a vital role in gathering data about the situation on the ground. Their aim will always be to de-escalate a situation and call in the support of the emergency services should it prove necessary.
The following shifts have been initially identified as a priority for the Street Support Officer operation: Fridays 7pm till 1am (6 hrs), Saturdays 5pm till 1am (8 hrs), Sundays at Bank holidays 6pm till 11pm (5 hrs). The initial period will be the two May Bank Holidays -3,4 & 5 & 24, 25 & 26 May 2024 and the weekend at the end of the local half term break 31 May and 1 June 2024. After this a review will be held where initial results will be examined and any adjustments to the scheme made.
The Street Support operation will resume over the seven school summer holiday weekends - 19 & 20, 26&27 July, 2&3, 9&10, 16&17, 23&24, and 30&31 August (note: this does not currently include the Sunday of the August Bank holiday).
As this is a trial, the dates and times may vary slightly as we find out when they are most needed. More dates will be added should more funding become available. Any changes will be advertised on the Town Council Facebook page and website www.windermere-tc.gov.uk.
The Town Council would like to thank Westmorland & Furness Council for their financial support of this trial, the Police for their advice and guidance, Barwatch for their input and support and Tactical Security for helping to make the trial possible with the funding available.
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Windermere Gateway Project Community Consultation FAQs

4/4/2024

 
Windermere Gateway Project Community Consultation Response.
The Town Council used their Facebook page to inform the community of the recent Gateway Project Consultation Event. This event generated a great many comments and questions on that page. We felt they were important questions which needed answering.

The Town Council Communication Team took the key issues and questions that had been made by residents on this page and put them into a document which we sent to the LDNPA explaining what the Windermere residents wanted to know.

The various organisations involved, Urban Splash, National Trust, Westmorland and Furness Council and LDNPA, have used our submission and the responses to the drop in event to compile a list of FAQs which they have attempted to answer in as much detail as they are able at this point in time.

This document is available as a PDF here.

These FAQs are also shared on the webpage of each partner, which are linked below:
Urban Splash
https://www.urbansplash.co.uk/windermere-infrastructure-planning-consultation
Lake District National Park Authority
www.lakedistrict.gov.uk/windermeregateway
National Trust
www.nationaltrust.org.uk/windermere-gateway
Westmorland and Furness Council
https://www.westmorlandandfurness.gov.uk/business-and-licensing/business-support/town-and-village-projects/windermere-gateway

These FAQs do not represent the views of the Town Council who will continue to ensure that the voices of residents are heard and that information is shared as widely as possible.

Town Council Statement on Windermere Lake Water Quality

30/1/2024

 

At the meeting on 18th January 2024, the Town Council unanimously agreed to adopt the following position as the best way to safeguard the future of Lake Windermere.
Windermere & Bowness Town Council fully support any project or initiative that will stop all sewage discharges into Lake Windermere. In particular, we welcome the “Lake Annecy Solution” proposed by United Utilities in their email to customers on 30 November 2023, and urge all relevant parties to progress this project speedily.
The document describing the Lake Annecy solution is available on our website here (see pages 5&6): action_plan_for_windermere_-_united_utilities.pdf

We know that the quality of the water in Lake Windermere is of huge importance to our residents as shown by the questions at our Annual Parish Meeting last April. Since then, the Town Council has set up an advisory group to lead their work on the matter and has been working with a network of other organisations to prioritise the health of the lake.​
Additional details of the proposed scheme, along with maps detailing the possible route of the pipes have been provided by United Utilities:
Feasibility Review Summary:   
 
Between July and December 2023, a team of 15 engineers, from multiple disciplines, conducted a high-level feasibility assessment to understand how all discharges within the Windermere catchment could be diverted and taken to a notional treatment facility at Grange Over Sands. The review has accounted for known factors, such as topography and areas of ecological importance - to develop a detailed proposal for a scheme of this magnitude would require further detailed investigation, however the assessment undertaken to date has demonstrated what a theoretical view could entail, summarised as follows:
 
  • In total, 247 miles of new network would be required throughout the catchment to remove all discharges, this consists of:
    • A 42 mile long ‘ring main’ style network, linked around Windermere from Grasmere to Newby Bridge – then flowing to Grange Over Sands, with a theorised view that treated flows will be returned to the environment in Morecambe Bay, via a long-sea outfall pipe. This section of network would look to intercept the main public network and significant foul water systems.
    • Using a case study from the village of Rydal, estimates have been applied across the catchment to understand the potential scale of infrastructure to connect individual septic tanks to the new network. This study estimated that a further 205 miles of network would be required to provide connections to individual properties.
  • The proposed route has been considered with several principles including minimising the total sewer length, minimising impact on communities, businesses and tourism, and avoiding areas of environmental, ecological and archaeological importance.
  • Estimates for the scheme have been produced using methodologies aligned with guidance and recommendations of the Infrastructure Projects Authority (IPA) and Association for the Advancement of Cost Engineering (ACCE). Given the scale of the proposed solution and comparative timescales to complete the review, the solution developed can only be considered conceptual and therefore subject to very high estimating tolerances, i.e. an ‘order of magnitude’ estimate. To remove all discharges from the catchment has been estimated between £3.5bn and £6.4bn.

Windermere in Bloom Awards Evening a Great Success

23/10/2023

 
Good evening!
It was a fabulous night on Thursday 19th October 2023 at the 10th Windermere In Bloom annual award ceremony!
The evening started with a report from Deputy Mayor Lisa Greasley reporting back on the success of the Town Council at the Cumbria in Bloom Awards: The Town Council's work in Elleray Woods and Orrest Head was judged to be "Outstanding" rating Gold for Biodiversity and Woodland. The developments at Jubilee Garden in Bowness was also judged to be "Outstanding". The Town Council are very proud to have provided these outstanding spaces for the residents to enjoy.
After that it was on to the main event handing out certificates and trophies to the people and organisations throughout the Town who had created such wonderful gardens this season. A huge congratulations to all the amazing trophy winners for so much hard work creating all their beautiful gardens and displays!
A big thanks to Deputy Mayor Lisa Greasley, Cllr Christine Hallatsch and the Mayor Leith Hallatsch for organising everything, a lot of hours went into this event and it was not an easy job to judge so many beautiful gardens and displays.
The Town Council hope you all enjoyed yourselves, many thanks to everyone for coming!

Windermere in Bloom Awards Evening Coming Soon

6/10/2023

 
Windermere in Bloom Awards Evening19th October 2023:
The annual celebration of our fantastic gardeners who help make our Town such a colourful and biodiverse place to live is coming up soon.

The awards evening will be held at the Marchesi Centre at 7pm on Thursday 19th October. If you have received an invitation please RSVP to Cllr Christine Hallatsch as soon as possible as we need to know the number of people attending for catering purposes.

Shree Swaminarayan Mandir Parade

19/8/2023

 
Thank you to all the members of Shree Swaminarayan Mandir from Bolton, London and beyond for sharing their culture with us in a spectacular procession in Bowness this morning. Mayor Leith Hallatsch enjoyed the additions to his mayoral chain of office.

8 year old double amputee Tony Hugell summits Orrest Head

8/8/2023

 
Windermere & Bowness Town Council are happy to have supported the fundraising dynamo and 8 year old double amputee Tony Hudgell as he summitted Orrest Head today. He and his crowd of supporters got to enjoy magnificent views from the Wainwright summit owned by the people of Windermere. For more information visit the Tony Hudgell Foundation . Pictures of Tony crossing the finish line.

Remembrance Sunday 2022

11/11/2022

 
The service will be held at Windermere War Memorial at 2.30pm on Sunday 13th November. All welcome. 

British Heart Foundation Shop Needs Volunteers

10/11/2022

 
After losing 20% of their volunteers during Covid, the store in Bowness really needs your help. Even 2 hours a week would be hugely appreciated and of enormous impact. Just pop in to the shop on Crag Brow or visit https://myvolunteer.bhf.org.uk/register
​

Bowness Christmas Market

1/11/2022

 
The Christmas Markets on Bowness Glebe will be held this year in late November and on Sunday 4th December. For any further information, please contact [email protected]

Windermere Christmas Market

1/11/2022

 
This will take place on the weekend of Saturday 10th and Sunday 11th December this year, in central Windermere. For any enquiries, please contact [email protected]

Lake District Summer Music Festival

21/6/2022

 
The Summer Music Festival takes place in July & August this year. The events that are local to Windermere are listed on the attached programme. 
Lake District Summer Music 2022
File Size: 3164 kb
File Type: pdf
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New Mayor & Deputy Mayor

5/5/2022

 
At the AGM on 4th May 2022, Cllr Kate Tripp was elected as Town Mayor and Cllr Leith Hallatsch as Deputy Mayor. 
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