SAVE OUR MATERNITY UNIT: THE fate of Devizes and Malmesbury maternity units should become clearer on Tuesday when the Kennet and North Wiltshire Primary Care Trust meets.

The trust has changed the venue of the board meeting to the Assembly Rooms at Devizes Town Hall at 2.30pm.

The new venue has been arranged because the trust believes large numbers of mothers and maternity campaigners will attend.

The trust has not provided the Gazette with the report on maternity services that will be discussed at the meeting.

Phil Day, the trust's director of community services, was said to be working on the report yesterday as the Gazette went to press and was unavailable for comment.

The Gazette was told the agenda and reports were due to be sent out by post last night. Normally agendas and reports for the trust's meetings are received seven days in advance.

It is thought the board meeting will discuss a review of maternity units by Ann Nash, the acting director of maternity services at West Wiltshire Primary Care Trust which was published earlier this month.

Ms Nash's report suggests Devizes and Trowbridge maternity units merge but does not recommend on which site the merged unit should be located.

She also believes the Malmesbury's unit's work should be transferred to Chippenham Maternity Unit.

If Devizes and Malmesbury maternity units lose birthing facilities Ms Nash says both should provide day time ante natal and post natal care.

It is also thought the meeting will hear the results of a survey of 2,000 women in the Kennet and North Wiltshire districts. The University of Bath has undertaken a postal survey of women who gave birth between April 2002 and April 2003.

The survey consists of ten questions which focus on the options of where to give birth when the women were pregnant and asks where they would prefer to give birth if they became pregnant in the future.

The trust undertook the survey following the presentation of two petitions signed by more than 10,000 people against the closure of Devizes and Malmesbury maternity units.

These petitions were presented to the trust at the end of a protest march in February when 500 people took to the streets of Devizes.

The trust says the two units are expensive to run but campaigners say the standard of care is first class and breast feeding rates at both units are above the national average.

Campaigners also argue the trust should not make decisions about the units until guidance on the future of maternity services is published by the Department of Health next year.

The public can ask questions at the beginning of the meeting. The trust asks people, where possible, to submit questions in writing at reception before the meeting.