Health campaigners have written to Kingston’s clinical commissioning group (CCG) asking for a key vote on axing hospital services to be delayed.

The CCG, which holds the purse strings for health services in the borough, will vote at a meeting next Tuesday on whether to approve plans to cut maternity, children’s, and accident and emergency services in south-west London hospitals.

The Better Services, Better Value (BSBV) review aims to provide fewer acute hospital services, in favour of primary and community care.

The area has to save about £350m on health services by 2017-18, BSBV has said.

But campaigners say the public has not had enough time to review the proposals and formulate questions ahead of the vote.

The deadline for submission of advance questions for the meeting was yesterday – while the BSBV proposals were published today.

Under the plans, the hospitals most likely to lose maternity and accident and emergency services are Epsom and St Helier.

Kingston Hospital has escaped the chop and would not lose out under any of the three proposed options, which will go to public consultation in early summer.

A spokeswoman for the CCG said: “It’s important to emphasise that no decisions will be made regarding changes to local health services at the governing body meeting next week.

"Following the meeting a committee of the seven CCGs involved in the review will need to approve the business case going to full public consultation, which will then be followed by public consultation lasting for several months.

"Members of the public will therefore have plenty of opportunity to comment on any options before a decision is made later in the year, and we’d urge as many people as possible to get involved.”

For more information on BSBV, click here.

The CCG’s governing board will meet at Kingston’s Guildhall on Tuesday, May 7, at 1pm.