A DOWNGRADE of maternity services at the Horton General Hospital is being challenged on three separate fronts.

Plans to make the Banbury hospital midwife-led, with high-risk expectant mothers giving birth at the John Radcliffe Hospital in Oxford instead, are coming into effect on October 3.

But Oxfordshire County Council’s health overview and scrutiny committee asked Oxford University Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust (OUH) last week to answer key questions on its contingency plans to ensure safety.

If the committee is not satisfied that everything possible has been done to keep mothers and babies safe it may choose to refer the matter to the Health Secretary.

Committee chairwoman Yvonne Constance OBE said: "There is a huge sense that this has been to the Secretary of State before and I am not saying that we want to do it.

"But the big issue that seems to have not been addressed is why are all these patients being transported to the John Radcliffe?"

It follows months of failed attempts by OUH to recruit enough middle-grade obstetricians to keep the current service at the Horton.

Back in 2008 the same committee referred proposals to downgrade maternity and children’s services at the Banbury hospital to then-Health Secretary Alan Johnson, who rejected them.

Bosses at OUH will try to come to an agreement with the committee at its next meeting on Friday, September 30.

The earliest date services could now be reinstated is January 9, 2017.

Meanwhile, a crowdfunded campaign led by the Keep the Horton General (KTHG) group to mount a legal challenge to the decision has raised £5,000 just days after its launch.

So far about 130 donors have made contributions, including £1,000 from local firm the Hawking Group.

Solicitors firm Leigh Day has been instructed by KTHG to seek legal redress to challenge OUH. A further £15,000 is still needed.

Chairman Keith Strangwood said: "It’s going pretty well and we are optimistic. It’s very touching to see the community behind us.

"When we gave them all the documented information Leigh Day agreed we may have a case.

"They would not take it on unless they thought we had".

At the same time the MP for Banbury, Victoria Prentis, has secured a Ten Minute Rule Bill to discuss issues affecting the Horton in the House of Commons.

On Tuesday, October 25 Mrs Prentis, who was born at the Horton, will have ten minutes to propose a change to current legislation in the light of the crisis.

In a statement read out at Thursday's health overview and scrutiny committee meeting she said she was "genuinely afraid that lives will be lost" after the suspension of obstetric services at the Horton.

She added: "Absolutely no effort has been made to engage with clinicians or the public. The feeling is this has been done to the people, rather than on their behalf.

"Without controls and contingency there are a number of 'high risks' on the register, including the timeliness of transfer, impact on the John Radcliffe’s maternity service and retention of staff.

"I asked the committee to do everything in its powers to intervene and hold the trust to account".

Paul Brennan, director of clinical services at OUH, said: "We understand that councillors and other committee members will want to take every opportunity to fully inform themselves about the reasons behind the decision to temporarily suspend the obstetric service at the Horton General Hospital.

"We have explained the progress we are making with our recruitment and the contingency arrangements we have put in place to ensure patient safety.

"We are very happy to have the opportunity to discuss this in more detail on September 30 but, for patient safety reasons, we will obviously need to continue to plan to put in place the new temporary arrangements from the beginning of October".