A MATERNITY hospital is on course to re-open after a successful recruitment drive, but more midwives must be employed first.

Campaigners joined forces across east Cleveland and north-east Yorkshire when South Tees NHS Trust closed the maternity unit at Guisborough Hospital in November.

And their pressure looks like paying off, according to a progress report by the trust which reveals that ten midwives have been employed.

But it makes clear that another five must be employed before the unit can re-open.

Managers believe that a number of trainee midwives from Scotland will join the trust when they qualify in September.

However, a number of midwives at the James Cook University Hospital, in Middlesbrough, are due to retire so the problem may continue.

The trust has declined to put a date on when the maternity unit may re-open.

However campaigner Karen Rule, a mother in Guisborough, welcomed the news.

She said: "This is obviously good progress, but we will feel a lot happier when the unit is eventually re-opened. It should be re-opened in months rather than years."

Trust chairman John Foster said: "It must be stressed the decision to temporarily close the unit was made on safety grounds, in the interests of mothers, babies and staff. We feel we are making good progress."

The trust's report is the first quarterly update to be given to Redcar and Cleveland Borough Council.

The council has taken advantage of new legislation and has established a committee to investigate the closure.

The committee has recommended that the trust re-opens the unit as soon as possible; improve consultation; make greater use of the maternity unit when it is re-opened; and examine transport issues from rural areas.

The unit has nine inpatient beds and two delivery rooms.

About 150 babies are born there each year and other mothers transfer to Guisborough from the James Cook University Hospital after they have given birth.

About 4,700 babies are delivered in the Middlesbrough, east Cleveland and Richmondshire areas each year.

Out of 780 women who could have delivered at Guisborough last year, 150 did so.