A MOTHER-TO-BE told she could have her baby at a North-East maternity unit days before bosses announced its temporary closure says she feels let down.

This week, The Northern Echo revealed that staff shortages at Bishop Auckland Hospital’s maternity unit will mean a temporary shutdown between July 2 and September 2.

A combination of staff leaving and long-term illness mean the unit cannot operate safely round the clock.

Judith Carter, 30, from Darlington, visited the unit four days before the closure was announced and was told she could have her baby there.

She said that the decision had left her “completely deflated”, and added: “My first baby is due on August 3 and my husband and I went to view the labour ward at Bishop last Sunday and had decided to have our baby there rather than Darlington, even though we live in Darlington.

“I cannot understand why we were not advised of this on Sunday, June 19, four days before the news was made public, rather than being misled into making such a huge decision on where to have our child.”

Darlington MP Jenny Chapman said she would meet trust managers after constituents contacted her about the closure.

Mrs Carter said one of the main factors why they chose Bishop Auckland was that her husband could stay in the same room overnight, which is not an option at Darlington Memorial Hospital.

She said: “I now feel completely deflated that the choice of where to have my baby has been taken away from me and with such short notice I find very difficult to comprehend.”

Women are being offered the option of having their babies at Darlington or The University Hospital of North Durham, in Durham City.

A trust spokeswoman said: “We share Mr and Mrs Carter’s disappointment and that of other mums and dadsto- be, who wanted to have their baby in the midwife-led unit.

“The most important consideration, however, must be the safety of mother and baby, and we can offer midwife-led care in Durham or Darlington as an alternative.

“The decision to suspend the service for two months was only finalised this week, once we knew all other options had been explored.”