KENNET District Council should not insist that health services in Devizes are delivered through a community hospital, a committee was told on Thursday.

Coun Ann Hayhoe told Kennet's health strategy overview and scrutiny sub-committee that pushing Kennet and North Wiltshire Primary Care Trust into retaining Devizes Community Hospital with a list of minimum requirements was "too prescriptive" and could limit it in providing the health services in new and innovative ways.

The committee has until the end of March to develop a health strategy that will form Kennet policy for the next decade.

Under the heading "How We Will Judge Our Success", the draft strategy indicates that it would have to include the retention of a community hospital in Devizes offering minimum requirements including intermediate care beds, diagnostic facilities including X-ray, a midwife-led maternity unit, a 24-hour minor injuries unit, a dental clinic and out-patient clinics.

The minor injuries unit ceased to offer 24-hour cover in October, and consultation is in progress about closing the maternity unit in Devizes.

Mrs Hayhoe said: "We need to be a lot more flexible in our dealings with the trust. How would we like it if one of our partners said to us; 'We want this, this and this'?

But Coun Paula Winchcombe said that if they were to back-pedal on their demands, it could mean a loss of services to the town. "We have to keep that list as our minimum requirements."

Alan Houghton, Kennet's community development services manager, said the list was council policy and they couldn't go back to the full council and demand a change of policy.

The consultation period on Kennet's health strategy is due to run until February 25 and it will then be finally considered on May 25.