COUNCILLORS have voiced frustration over “a lack of progress” in reopening birthing services at North Devon District Hospital (NDDH) and are calling for an urgent meeting with the prime minister and health secretary.

During his first Prime Minister’s Questions Andy Burnham committed to reopening the Ladywell Unit as he said it was “unacceptable” that women had to travel up to two hours to give birth in alternative hospitals.

He assured members that Health Secretary Yvette Cooper would be looking at the issues affecting maternity services in North Devon and across the UK.

But councillors say they are “appalled” that there has been no response to letters they have sent to the government over the past few weeks asking for its intervention.

Staffing issues led to the unit being closed by the Royal Devon University Healthcare NHS Trust on August 11. Two locum doctors were appointed in the hopes of reopening on September 29 but they have since left leaving the rota “unsustainable” and the unit unsafe to open.

At a special health scrutiny committee of Devon County Council in Bideford, chief executive of the trust Sam Higginson and colleagues were grilled by councillors for five hours after hearing emotional and heartbreaking stories from women affected by the closure.

The closure has raised questions over the effectiveness of leadership and why the situation has been allowed to get to this stage as staffing problems were raised two years ago.

The trust says it is committed to reopening the unit and that the hospital, which is the most remote acute mainline hospital in the UK, is critical to the future of healthcare in North Devon but has spoken of the national shortage of obstetricians and the difficulties of attracting new recruits to a small hospital like NDDH which was well overdue for a clinical upgrade.

Some 127 births have taken place in other hospitals “without significant incident” since Ladywell has been closed, the trust said, but women were angry that the “near misses, delays, distress, complaints and emergency diversions” which happened as a result had not been talked about.

Letters from women detailing their experiences were presented to the meeting by the campaign group Maternity Matters.

One said she was told to choose a C-section to avoid the drive during labour and there were stories of wards being overcrowded and so busy that staff forgot dinner.

There were also heart-breaking stories from women who had lost babies and the vital role NDDH had played in labours where lives were at threat.

The Trust says it will continue to review its readiness to reopen every two weeks and will only announce a new reopening date once all required safety criteria have been met.

Community midwifery, antenatal appointments, scans and outpatient maternity services are continuing at North Devon District Hospital.

Cllr Cheryl Cottle-Hunkin (Lib Dem, Torrington Rural) said she was “appalled” there had still been no response from the government and the committee would be escalating this to the prime minister seeking an urgent meeting with him and the health secretary.