The entrance to the Emergency Department (A&E) at the Cumberland Infirmary has moved (January 28, 2026).
The entrance has switched back to where the previous A&E entrance used to be – at the side of the hospital, close to the ambulance bays. The entrance now leads to a new waiting area for A&E.
Since April last year, patients have been accessing the Emergency Department via the main atrium entrance. This was to allow building work to take place on a new Urgent Treatment Centre, but from 28th January, the new entrance and waiting area was opened ready to welcome patients.
Dr Claire Gray, Emergency Medicine Consultant at NCIC, said: “The new entrance and waiting area marks a milestone in the progression of the new Urgent Treatment Centre (UTC) at the Cumberland Infirmary which will open to patients in Spring 2026. The UTC will be an expansion of our urgent and emergency care facilities at CIC and it will improve the way we are able to care for patients who need urgent and emergency treatment. By locating the UTC next to our A&E we will be able to separate out major and minor injuries so the most appropriate care can be provided.
“Urgent care will be provided in one place with Cumbria Health (out of hours doctors) also set to move to the department. The new facility will provide 12 consultation rooms. The current Emergency Department was built with capacity for 30,000 attendances per year. Last year, it had 78,300 attendances which is more than two and half times its original capacity so we are delighted that we will be expanding the space we have.
“Until the UTC opens in Spring, we will continue to redirect patients to the most appropriate service for them if their condition is not an emergency.”
2025 news
Funding for a new £12m Urgent Treatment Centre (UTC) at the Cumberland Infirmary in Carlisle was approved in November 2024.
The new UTC is part of a longer term plan to improve access to urgent care services in Carlisle easing emergency department pressures.
The current A&E department was built with capacity for 30,000 attendances each year. Last year we had 78,300 attendances which is more than two and half times its current capacity. This often leads to difficulties with overcrowding in the department and issues with privacy and dignity for our patients.
The UTC will be built next to the existing emergency department and will have 12 new clinic rooms with a separate waiting area for children and adults.
Patients who need to use the Emergency Department and the Urgent Treatment Centre will enter through the same route and be directed to the right service for their needs when they are assessed.
Opening the UTC will help make sure patients are seen in the right place at the right time by the right healthcare professional. The centre will also provide great support to the main Emergency Department by freeing up capacity for patients who are acutely unwell.
We know our patients want as smooth a journey as possible when receiving treatment and urgent care services help ensure this is the case.
The centres will also help keep our emergency care departments free for what they are there for – emergencies.
Cumbria Health, who provide out of hours GP services will also be located in the UTC once it is complete which means that patients will have seamless access to the right service. Cumbria Health have been temporarily relocated from the emergency department to the ground floor of the Cumberland Infirmary to free up space in the meantime.
Work is ongoing currently and the centre is expected to be complete this upcoming winter.