SOUTH Worcestershire Primary Care Trust's own plan of how a typical small hospital might look on the Seaford Court site, which we reproduce on this page, indicates how little space there would be for the low-cost housing now being discussed.

Existing buildings mean any new housing would be right on top of the hospital. It would leave no space to expand the hospital in the future without eating into valuable car parking, which could well prove insufficient in the first place.

On Tuesday, members of Malvern Hills District Council will be asked to agree the sale of its Pickersleigh Road depot as the site for a new health centre.

We are concerned this debate is going on at the same time as MHDC is in discussion with the PCT about changing the health-only designation of the Seaford Court site, with a view to selling some land for development of low-cost housing.

The site should not be used to solve the financial problems of the PCT or to help MHDC meet its housing targets.

During the consultation earlier this year, the public made it quite clear they did not want any part of the Seaford Court site sold, and it ought to be the responsibility of the council to ensure this is the case.

Public sector projects are forever being blighted by this type of short-term thinking. In 10 years time, and probably less, any new hospital will probably not be big enough for an expanding Malvern population.

The public would be entitled to be extremely concerned if any deals were done now which meant there was not room for a new hospital to expand in the future.