NHS will consider closing St Peter's Hospital in Maldon

St Peter's Hospital in Maldon will temporarily shut with inpatient beds relocated this winter while "long-term solutions" are discussed

Closing a community hospital will be one of the options on the table when the public is consulted next year, NHS managers have confirmed.

St Peter's Hospital in Maldon, Essex, provides inpatient stroke rehabilitation and has a birthing unit.

Those services will temporarily shut this winter, with beds relocated, while "long-term solutions" are discussed.

Richard Siddall, the independent leader of Maldon District Council, said he was "dismayed" at the decision.

"Whilst I recognise the issues the NHS are facing with the St Peter's site, these are not new problems and something that should have been managed appropriately," he said.

Parents will need to travel about 15 miles further, to Chelmsford, if they want to give birth in hospital

St Peter's has 16 beds for stroke and general rehabilitation patients and has a midwifery-led birthing unit.

The temporary closure will mean expectant parents must drive an extra 16 miles to Braintree (26km) or 15 miles (24km) to Broomfield Hospital in Chelmsford to give birth.

An extra 25 beds will be made available for stroke rehabilitation at Brentwood Community Hospital, and there will be 14 at the Cumberlege Intermediate Care Centre in Rochford, near Southend-on-Sea.

Outpatient services such as diagnostics and screening would still be provided at St Peter's throughout the winter, the ICB said.

The temporary closure and relocation of beds will begin this autumn - at an exact date yet to be announced.

Mr Siddall added that the council would be "pushing" the NHS to build and open up the other medical facilities that have been proposed for the district.

'Best experience'

An NHS spokesperson said proposals for the future of St Peter's would be developed "in conjunction with local people and key stakeholders in line with the best possible clinical advice" later this year.

It said the Maldon birthing unit only supported about six births a month and purpose-built facilities at Braintree would enable them to provide families with the "best experience".

A pre-consultation business case, including the option of closing the hospital, would form the basis of a public consultation and decision-making in early 2024, it added.

"Our main aim is to deliver the best possible outcomes for our patients in high-quality facilities," said consultant geriatrician Dr Matt Sweeting, the interim medical director at the NHS Mid and South Essex Integrated Care Board (ICB).