A RADICAL plan to cut the number of beds for mentally ill people in Warrington by a third has been revealed.

But health chiefs say the scheme will not mean redundancies and will help plug the £5.2million annual shortfall suffered by the 5 Boroughs Trust.

And they said it will provide a much needed modernisation on services with the emphasis on treating people at home and in day centres rather than admitting and keeping them in hospital. There will now be a summer-long consultation process before final decisions are made. The process, Change For The Better, was launched on Thursday in Warrington and 5 Boroughs chief, John Gartside, was keen to stress that the plans were not set in stone.

"We see this as a change for the better," he added. "This exercise is not about making savings and this is a real consultation."

While the details of the changes have not been fully revealed, they will see a refurbishment of the mental health services at Hollins Park hospital. That work would see the number of beds reduced from 60 to 40. Concerned staff were told they would find out details today, Thursday, but bosses were quick to confirm that redundancies were not part of the plan.

The other two options, to do nothing or to close two centres and centralise the services at one regional base, were described as being too costly and not good for patients.

Public meetings are planned at The Gateway on Sankey Street at 11am tomorrow, Friday; at the Town Hall on July 11 at 6pm and back at the Gateway at 1pm on August 8.

sharker@guardiangrp.co.uk