Royal Shrewsbury Hospital Rainbow Unit battle pledge

Campaigners were today urged to keep up the battle to save services at the Royal Shrewsbury Hospital and warned: "Once they are moved they will never come back."

The warning was issued by Ron Jones, a former director at the hospital, who also claimed chiefs were 'jumping the gun' by asking people what should be done with the site's Rainbow Unit.

Health bosses have put forward four options for the £800,000 children's cancer unit, including bulldozing it, as part of a countywide shake-up of services.

But Mr Jones said hospital bosses should not be putting options for the centre forward when plans to move women and children's inpatient services, including children's cancer and haematology services, to a new unit at Telford's Princess Royal Hospital have not even been approved.

Mr Jones today said: "From a campaigner's point of view it is obviously our first option to save the maternity, neonatal and children's services moving ac-ross to Telford in the first place. If we lose that battle then everything else is a consequence of that and once it has moved it'll never come back.

"I can understand why some people are in a difficult position because they have put in a lot of hard fundraising work for the current Rainbow Unit.

"But the trust is jumping the gun a little bit in asking people what to decide to do with the centre when no plans have been finalised yet. The argument should still be that the services remain in Shrewsbury because that is the best central location for it."

Adam Cairns, chief executive of The Shrewsbury and Telford Hospital NHS Trust, outlined four options for the Rainbow Unit on Monday at a meeting of the parent oncology focus group.

A spokesman for the trust said: "We are very keen that the legacy of the Rainbow Unit is shaped by the patients and families themselves. Please contact future@sath.nhs.uk if you would like to be involved."

See also:

• Royal Shrewsbury Hospital Rainbow Unit under threat