Ludlow hospital maternity unit re-opens

An improved service inside the main hospital building at Ludlow is now up and running, having been fully transferred from the ageing former workhouse building on site.

Full maternity services have also been reinstated at Royal Shrewsbury Hospital, where they were scaled back while maintenance work took place to the heating system.

Shrewsbury and Telford Hospital NHS Trust closed the Ludlow service at short notice on October 14 saying that a structural assessment of the old workhouse building was needed. Within a week some maternity services had been transferred to the more modern main building where the Stretton Ward is still empty since its patients were merged with the Dinham Ward last year.

But until now Ludlow was not receiving expectant mothers for birthing.

Jo Banks, women and children's care group director at SaTH, said: "We have always been committed to providing a local midwifery services for local people and therefore I am delighted that Ludlow midwife-led unit is fully up and running.

"Care for women giving birth, postnatal services, antenatal appointments, booking services and day appointments are all now provided at the Stretton Ward, and for the first time ever in Ludlow we now have an area where we can offer water births.

"The Stretton Ward provides a very good environment for women. We have two labour rooms and a warm and comfortable space for day services.

"I would like to apologise for any disruption caused. Transferring services from one building to another is a challenging task, but one we believe is absolutely the correct thing do to, and I would like to thank everyone involved in the move.

"Staff worked tirelessly to ensure as little disruption as possible was caused and that all services were restored quickly."

She said the former workhouse building was more than 400 years old and had had ongoing assessments year on year for safety, and the time had come when maternity services simply could not be run from it.

However, Ms Banks said it was difficult to know beyond the coming year what the future would bring.

"As we all know the NHS is changing year on year so I hope that today and for months to come we will continue to provide the service out of the unit," she said.

Mothers and other campaigners in the town are still planning to march in support of maternity in Ludlow on December 3 as they say they still have concerns over its long term future, with funding yet to be agreed from April next year.

A full range of maternity services has also been restored at Shrewsbury following a period of essential maintenance works to the main plant room in the hospital's Copthorne Building.

BLOB A Ludlow Health Forum meeting, open to the public and chaired by MP and health minister Philip Dunne, will take place tomorrow (WED NOV 9) at Ludlow Assembly Rooms from 4.30pm.