DECISION day over the future of Frenchay Hospital is looming and residents in favour of keeping the site are being urged to take the last chance to have their say.

On March 16 the bosses of six local health trusts will meet to decide whether Frenchay or Southmead should be home to the one major hospital serving South Gloucestershire and North Bristol.

North Bristol NHS Trust, which runs both hospitals, is expected to announce its preference over the Southmead site.

South Gloucestershire Primary Care Trust has carried out a survey which showed strong support within the unitary authority to keep Frenchay as the acute hospital with an accident and emergency department on site.

The Bristol Health Services Plan, which is co-ordinating the changes, carried out consultation between September and December last year. It asked the public which site they preferred for a "super" hospital and the results of that consultation will be published later this month.

Councillors on both South Gloucestershire and Bristol councils will then draw up their own response to the findings, before all six health trusts study them ahead of the D-Day meeting.

Each trust chairman will have a vote on which hospital site will be developed and which will become home to a community hospital.

Northavon MP Steve Webb has now called on the residents of South Gloucestershire to act now if they want to save Frenchay Hospital.

Mr Webb is urging people to write to Brian Goodson, the chairman of South Gloucestershire Primary Care Trust, in defence of the Frenchay site. He said people should appeal to Mr Goodson to speak out at the crucial March meeting to defend Frenchay Hospital and the interests of the people of South Gloucestershire.

Mr Goodson can be contacted at 1 Monarch Court, Emerald Park, Emerson's Green.