PETERSFIELD'S Grange Maternity Centre re-opens its doors officially next month – after a three-year wait. And it will offer an extended range of services to pregnant women in the district. In a boon to the town, and East Hampshire as a whole, from April 1 the the midwife-led centre will provide a presence 24 hours a day, providing full birth facilities as well as ante-natal and post-natal clinics. A fresh intake of staff to the Swan Street premises has been added to the existing workforce, with the team currently familiarising themselves to the surroundings and preparing for the grand opening. Project midwife Dawn Phillips was delighted with the progress and the prosepct of a full birthing service in Petersfield, saying: "It's fantastic news, and we are all excited at the moment. We've had a complete overhaul and all the new staff are I are in the process of getting the Grange Maternity Centre ready to open its doors on April 1. "We've just taken on four new midwives, in addition to our normal establishment, so we can offer a midwife presence 24 hours a day, seven days a week, which hasn't been done since July 2005. "We have had big intake of new staff, including midwives and health support workers, who will support the midwives on the smooth running of the Grange." Dawn added: "We can now offer women up to a 48- hour post-natal overnight stay at the Grange Maternity Centre, and the Petersfield team will run ante-natal clinics on weekday mornings and post- natal clinics on weekday afternoons. "We can now offer care to women who don't live in the area but want a birth at the Grange, which is a midwife-led centre with no doctors." "We offer births for normal, low-risk mothers, but we don't offer epidurals," she added. And Dawn continued to champion the volunteers of the Save the Grange Campaign who have been battling to keep the Grange open in recent years, saying: "Save the Grange have been working very closely with us and we are delighted that they have been so supportive and helpful. "We have developed a real relationship working with them. The reopening of the Grange Maternity Centre is something that is really good for the women of this area, and the district as a whole," she added. Donna Ockendon, head of midwifery and divisional clinical director for Portsmouth Hospitals NHS Trust, was equally pleased with the news, adding: "This is fantastic, and I am delighted that from April 1 the Grange Maternity Centre will re-open fully to offer a 24-hour midwifery presence. "This will mean for the first time since July 2005 women who choose to birth baby at the Grange can have up to 48 hours to recuperate, promoting breastfeeding and developing a bond between mother and baby," she added. "It adds to the choice already available across the district. We've listened carefully to feedback from the Petersfield population and the Save the Grange group, and we are clear – people in the Petersfield area valued the Grange, and wanted its service to be restored fully. "Consequently, we've added to its services. We have put ante-natal and post-natal clinics running throughout the week, and our aim is that the Grange Maternity Centre will be a centre for maternity care for Petersfield and its district – a one stop shop for everything maternity." Ms Ockendon also paid tribute to the supporters of the Save the Grange campaign. "We've received a lot of support from local residents, GPs and the primary care trust, and we are grateful to the Save the Grange campaign. They have kept this issue uppermost in everyone's minds, and they have done a huge service to families of Petersfield. "We are delighted that the Grange Maternity Centre is moving onwards, on what we hope will be a successful journey." And Ms Ockendon made a plea for local parents to use the facility. "Women have to make the choice to use the Grange Maternity Centre for its future," she said. "We need the Grange to be a centre for maternity care and need women to choose to have their babies there, when it is clinically appropriate. "Facilities at the Grange are suitable for low-risk mothers, including first-timers, and we certainly hope that the vast majority of women from Petersfield and its district will use the Grange for the majority of ante-natal and post-natal care." Meanwhile, Sarah Roberts of the Save the Grange campaign reflected on a job well done. She said: "We are absolutely delighted. It's been a long, hard fight since it closed suddenly in July 2005. But after a large campaign to have it restored, which involved a vast number of people, including lots of local parents, it is wonderful to bring choice back to the locality. "The total frustration of not knowing when the Grange was going to be re-opened was very frustrating, as it was always a temporary closure but we did not know if and when it was going to re- open. "Yet through it all we had such marvellous support from the community as a whole, as well as all the individuals who signed petitions and have been part of the campaign; mums, dads, local parents with busy lives, but they have all found the time to put up posters or organise events and undertaken fundraising. It's nice to have a successful story. "We had a rally through the centre of Petersfield, a trip to Downing Street, meetings with the health minister and people from Portsmouth Hospital Trust, petitions, and four public meetings. "The Grange Maternity Centre is going to be a huge resource for the area, providing the community with choice," she added. With the Grange due to open on April 1, any prospective parents wishing to see the facility should call 01730 262415 or midwife Dawn Phillips on 07876 354615. After a bedding-in period of approximately one month, it is expected that the centre will have a grand re-opening ceremony in May.
