STAFF and patients at the King Edward VII Hospital at Midhurst are facing an agonising wait of up to four months after a planning application which could secure the hospital's future was put on hold.

A decision was expected to be made next month by Chichester District Council on whether to allow the existing Grade II Listed hospital to be converted into luxury apartments and a new hospital and homes to be built in its grounds.

The delay was announced last week after the Sussex Downs Conservation Board called for Chichester District Council to order an urgent investigation - known as an environmental impact assessment - to be made at the site.

The developers, Lincoln Holdings, had stated that unless planning permission was given for the proposals, the 152-bed hospital, which went into provisional liquidation in December 2002, would almost certainly face closure.

More than 400 medical staff work at the hospital, which treats private and NHS patients from Haslemere and across the South.

Speaking to The Herald, Lincoln Holding's project director Jim Biek said that plans for redeveloping the hospital site were still looking "positive".

"We are prepared to do the analysis and it didn't come as a very big surprise that we were asked by the council to do this.

"We got to work immediately on the assessment and will be working with our own environmental consultants as well as specialists from groups including English Nature and the SDCB itself," said Mr Biek.

However, Mr Biek refused to be drawn on the cost of the assessment and the costs that may come from having to delay the planning decision.

The application, along with the completed environmental assessment, is now expected to come before the district council at some time in September.

A spokesman for King Edward VII Hospital, Tricia Saunders, also remained positive about the news this week.

"The provisional liquidators, Shay Bannon, have continued to be very supportive to the hospital and are working with us to make the best possible use of the time leading up to the planning decision.

"We are confident about the hospital's future," Mrs Saunders said.