With firm plans for north Cumbria’s cottage hospitals set to be unveiled on Monday, bosses have again hinted that Wigton and Alston could be among those set to lose their beds.

The news will come as a blow to campaigners, who had hoped public pressure would help secure a reprieve.

The future of the community hospitals in Wigton, Brampton, Penrith, Alston, Keswick, Cockermouth, Maryport and Workington, along with the Copeland unit in Whitehaven, are under review.

It is part of a major overhaul of the troubled local NHS, led by the Government-appointed Success Regime.

But to date the options put forward have been controversial, particularly proposals to close some or all of the cottage hospital beds and downgrade acute hospital services in the west of the county.

The Cumberland News recently revealed that its favoured plan would be to remove all beds from Wigton, Alston and Maryport, along with a few from Penrith, and consolidate an overall smaller number of beds across the remaining sites to help tackle staffing issues.

This was met with a huge backlash, prompting Success Regime boss Sir Neil to visit the three hospitals and meet campaigners, who have now drawn up their own alternative plans.

The Success Regime is now set to publish its preferred plans on Monday, followed by a 12-week formal consultation – and it is expected bed closures will still be on the cards.

Speaking at a public meeting in Whitehaven, Sir Neil McKay again said that he believed that plans to deliver more care in the community – through what they have named Integrated Care Communities (ICCs) – will mean there is less need for beds.

He said: “If ICCs operate in the way we think they will there will be far less dependency on beds. Wigton, Maryport and Alston are where we believe beds may not be necessary.”

However he added that they are “working on some exciting proposals”, with the Cumbria Partnership NHS Foundation Trust – which runs community hospitals – and carrying out detailed discussions with League of Friends campaigners, GPs and other organisations about how the community hospitals can be developed for the future.

Its chief executive, Claire Molloy, is currently touring all of the hospitals to carry out these discussions, and this will continue while the formal Success Regime consultation is underway.

A trust spokeswoman said: “Claire Molloy is meeting with a small working group from each of the community hospitals. Over the next three months, each group will look at the feasibility of potential future proposals, to be sure that every possible option has been fully explored.

“The outcome of this work will inform responses to public consultation due to take place over the next three months to ensure that key groups have as much opportunity as possible to have their views considered.”

The consultation is expected to include public meetings at all of the towns with community hospitals,.