Pregnant mums have to give birth 21 miles away as nurses at local unit are on maternity leave

Campaigners say lives are being put at risk by the 'disgraceful' decision to close the maternity unit at Eastbourne hospital to new admissions.

But the hospital says it cannot replace staff because of a national shortage of at least 3,000 midwives.

One expectant mother, who is eight and a half months pregnant, said yesterday that the cutbacks were 'frightening'.

"It could put babies' lives at risk," said 21-year-old Michelle Hume.

"There is no other unit for miles around.

"I have looked round the maternity unit at Eastbourne and it was clean and the staff were really helpful and friendly.

"It made me feel at ease that they were only minutes away.

"To think that the only other maternity unit is an hour away in Hastings is worrying. I find that scary and other mums would too."

Another expectant mother Sharon Glover, 23, said the situation was 'totally ridiculous'.

"I don't want to have my baby on a bus," she said.

"I'm expecting my first child - a baby boy - and it's scary enough thinking of all the things that could go wrong.

"But this is just awful. Surely they must be able to get staff from elsewhere."

The shortages mean that all mothers turning up for the first time to Eastbourne district general hospital will be told to trail to the Conquest hospital in Hastings - 21 miles away.

Eastbourne's maternity unit was on Conservative leader David Cameron's list of services under threat, unveiled on Monday.

Local Tory MP Nigel Waterson said: "This is a disgraceful situation that puts lives at risk when young mothers have to travel long distances to give birth.

"I have been fighting to keep the maternity and paediatrics and core services for residents of Eastbourne at our district general hospital for some years.

"This lack of staffing only proves that the NHS is determined to save money and not lives."

Liberal Democrat health spokesman Norman Lamb said: "This highlights the acute shortage of midwives at a time when many are coming out of training but can't get jobs.

"My worry is with the intentions behind this. Is it just a precursor to closing the unit permamently?"

Liz Walke, of the Save the District General Hospital campaign, said: "If people are on maternity leave they should have recruited replacements but they are not staffing the unit properly at all.

"It is totally unacceptable. We should have good services at both Eastbourne and Hastings."

The hospital blamed the national shortage of midwives for the closure.

A spokesman for East Sussex hospitals trust said four of the trust's 48 midwives were on maternity leave.

"The maternity unit at Eastbourne district general hospital currently is on divert for new admissions due to staff shortages caused by sickness and maternity leave," he sid.

"It is not uncommon for maternity units to work together to provide a safe level of maternity care.

"Although this is disruptive to the individuals affected, we make no apology for putting mothers and babies' safety first."

The Royal College of Midwives says there is a shortage of at least 3,000 midwives in the NHS - and an extra 10,000 are needed to fulfil government plans.

This week Mr Cameron said 29 hospitals were under threat of being closed or downgraded, 26 of which had a maternity unit at risk.

This is not the first time maternity units have had to close their doors temporarily.

Last year maternity units were closed for a total of 4,000 hours - or 165 days, forcing women to be transferred at the last minute to have their baby.

The Government has an informal target that each midwife be allocated to no more than 32 expectant mothers.

But more than 60 per cent of consultant-led midwive units in England did not meet this target last year, according to information from health research organisation Dr Foster.

The situation is far better in the rest of the UK. In Wales, only 11 per cent of units are in breach of the target - and 22 per cent in Scotland.

The midwife shortage has been exacerbated because government accountants massively understimated the number of babies who would be born last year - meaning not enough midwives were trained.

Since 2001 the number of live births went up by 12.5 per cent, while the number of midwives increased by just 4.5 per cent.

The birth rate is now the highest for 26 years, triggered by increased immigration and a rise in late motherhood.

The error means that each midwife now delivers 25 per cent more babies a year than the RCM considers appropriate.

Campaigners say the government wants to plug the gap by allowing poorly-trained maternity support workers to take the place of midwives in certain situations.

The Department of Health said there were almost 3,000 more midwives in the NHS than in 1997, when Labour took power.