FEAR are growing that Worcester's hospital will struggle to cope this winter after the shock closure of Redditch's maternity unit.

Worcestershire Royal Hospital has been told to consider stopping doing some operations by the city's MP due to serious concerns it will be swamped by more people than ever.

Anonymous maternity workers at the royal have also contacted your Worcester News today to say they only heard about the closure in Redditch via the media - criticising the handling of Friday's announcement.

As the debate rumbles on, campaigners have revealed they have launched a petition to try and get a u-turn - saying Health Secretary Jeremy Hunt should intervene.

As we revealed on Friday, NHS bosses say they don't have enough staff to operate the maternity ward at The Alexandra Hospital, meaning all births will be transferred to the royal from noon this Thursday.

Community leaders say Worcester's congestion will worsen, as will the already acute parking issues around the site and the ability of the hospital to cope with the general winter influx which is about to kick in.

MP Robin Walker has taken the step of describing the royal as "full" and wants some elective work transferred to Redditch as a return measure.

"It's not a rivalry, a case of Worcester versus Redditch but we've got to ensure we've got capacity at the royal," he said.

"My question is how do we get more elective work (planned operations and appointments) to the Alex, they've got to take some things off us.

"It's a great shame it had to be done this way when it would have been much better to get the Joint Services Review approved, when I do think it would have happened after that anyway.

"But the key thing from my perspective is, given the royal is so full, how do we create that extra capacity."

One anonymous worker at the royal's maternity ward said it had come at "a total shock" to them.

They said: "My fantastic colleagues at the Alex are worried about their jobs.

"We feel let down and we feel we're letting our patients down, we don't want to do that, we want everyone to have the best care possible during this special time in their lives."

Councillor Robin Lunn, who chairs Labour's Redditch branch, said the party was "extremely concerned, annoyed and bemused" at the move.

"We'd like to know where the trust believes expectant mothers should go as the royal does not have the capacity to deal with all those giving birth in Redditch and Bromsgrove," he said.

Neil Franks, from the Mid-Worcestershire branch of the Green Party, said the move would only "put more pressure on Worcester" and also called for a change of tack.

Worcestershire Acute Hospitals NHS Trust says no jobs will be lost under the move, and has insisted it is being done "on an emergency basis".

A spokesman said: "This decision was made on an emergency basis, following months of very real challenges surrounding recruitment and safe staffing in these areas.

"We met with staff in the obstetrics and neonatal departments at both the Alexandra and Worcestershire Royal Hospitals in the afternoon of Friday as soon as the decision was made, to make them aware of this emergency change and what it means for them."

He added: "These changes will ensure that we consistently deliver safe services and we're confident that we can support the additional births at Worcestershire Royal Hospital."

He said the Meadow Birth Centre, the new facility which opened in April at the royal, has seen more than 100 births already.

Interim Chief Nursing Officer Mari Gay said: "This is a clinical decision and is one we have not taken lightly. 

"Our staff have gone the extra mile to ensure that the care we give is of the highest standards and want to ensure that this is maintained. 

"I would stress that this is a temporary change and is a decision that is understood and supported by our commissioners."

The closure of the Redditch site will be reviewed in February.

Neal Stote, from the Save The Alex campaign group, has launched an online petition to try and get Mr Hunt to intervene.