Mental health wards at Epsom General Hospital will be moved 15 miles away.

The Delius and Elgar wards run by Surrey and Borders Partnership NHS Foundation Trust (SABP) at the hospital in Dorking Road will temporarily be moved to St Peter’s Hospital in Chertsey this month.

The relocation of the wards – which both provide support for patients “in periods of acute psychiatric illness” – follows a review by SABP.

The wards would then find a permanent home in Surrey subject to a consultation this year, the Trust stated.

Sarah Dewing, a psychologist from Epsom, believes the move would separate vulnerable patients from their support networks.

She told the Epsom Guardian: “Once again, mental health services are being affected by cuts, dressed up by the authorities as a positive move for the benefit of patients.

“That is clearly spin and not the case. How can moving vulnerable patients 20 miles away from their support networks be beneficial?

“Instead of investing money in community-based care, they are saving money by consolidating services.

“The rates of mental health problems and suicide are rising sharply and affect one in four of us, and yet mental health treatment continues to be the poor relation to physical health problems.”

The Trust had decided the current “environment” of the wards prevented it from “(providing) the type of surroundings we want people to experience when we help them in their recovery”, according to a statement on its website.

Andy Erskine, Director of Mental Health and Social Care at SABP, said: “Relocation will enable our staff to work more collaboratively across the wards under clinical leadership based on a single site. We have consulted with them about the location and are discussing any individual needs as necessary.

“Discussions with people using Delius and Elgar wards and their families are taking place and we will continue to involve and update people with developments as we progress our plans to transfer the services.

“People’s safety and security is our top priority and we will be putting individual plans in place for anyone affected by the relocation, including travel plans to assist those families with the greatest need so that the move does not hinder their ability to visit their relative.”

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