Kingston Hospital is pushing ahead with plans for a £7.8m expansion of its maternity unit in a bid that could secure its future.

Construction of the two-storey building and refurbishment of its existing maternity ward would increase the capacity for babies born in Kingston by nearly 25 per cent to more than 7,000 a year.

It would also head off the prospect of potential closure or downgrading by any future review of the NHS in south-west London, the hospital said.

Edward Davey, Kingston and Surbiton MP, said he hoped the plans could be be fast-tracked given the campaign to protect the maternity services in 2010.

However, Michael Walker, Unison officer for south-west London, warned other hospitals could challenge Kingston’s expansion with their own rival plans.

He said: “This is an excellent initiative, but there are no guarantees they can progress because the planned Government reforms, which give GPs the power to decide where mothers will be referred to, could undermine this kind of planning.”

Questions were raised about the future of the maternity ward before the general election last year, when Mr Davey revealed documents showing closure was being considered by NHS chiefs as part of a review of the maternity and accident and emergency depart- ments in south-west London.

Midwives said the move was inconceivable given the high demand at Kingston. The hospital delivers more babies than any other in south-west London, although it is now the oldest facility.

NHS Kingston Primary Care Trust (PCT) said it and other PCTs in south-west London were reviewing the proposal.

Unison representative and midwife Nora Pearce said: “It certainly needs it because women are waiting for a place. That’s the price you pay for being a good unit that people want to go to.”

Board members approved the business case for expansion at a board meeting before Christmas, but will have to gain backing from GPs and PCTs to go ahead.

A Kingston Hospital spokesman said: “The trust board approved the maternity development business case at the December meeting and has given its complete support to the plans.

“We are fully committed to growing our maternity unit and the next step is to gain local commissioner support to take this forward.

“This is likely to take some time, so in the short term we will be looking at ways in which we can re-organise the current unit to accommodate the rising number of births locally.”