A hospital which faced possible closure is to stay open, health bosses have confirmed.

Doubt surrounded the future of Southlands Hospital at Shoreham after plans were drawn up to close half the site down.

Worthing and Southlands NHS Trust will move some of the hospital's facilities to Worthing in 2002.

People living near Southlands, which does not have an accident and emergency department, feared it would then be closed down completely.

Their fears were fuelled when Adur Council approved plans for 150 new homes to be built on a derelict part of the site.

A review group was set up to consider the hospital's future and come up with ways it could be used if it is retained.

Among the options considered were:

No change.

Transferring existing services into the main hospital building, which would allow other buildings on the site to be sold.

Providing increased rehabilitation care on the site by expanding in-patient and day rehabilitation services and keeping acute out-patients care on site.

Selling the grounds and providing all existing care elsewhere.

The group, which consists of four local NHS Trusts, West Sussex and East Sussex Health Authorities, Worthing District Community Health Council and Adur Council has now completed its review.

Its recommendations will be released in full next week but it has been confirmed that they do not include closure.

Worthing and Southlands Trust spokeswoman Pam Lelliott said: "I cannot say at this stage what the full recommendations of the review group are.

"But I can confirm that they do not include closure, which is the good news the people who have been campaigning to keep services at Southlands wanted to hear.

"Once the proposals have been published there will be a three- month consultation period for people to give their views."

Coun Daniel Yates, acting leader of the Labour group on Adur Council, said: "I am sure that everyone will be delighted that scare stories of Southlands' closure have proved untrue.

"This leaves the real question of which present services there will be expanded, which new services will be introduced and whether any services would be better provided elsewhere.

"This can now be properly discussed during the three-month consultation period."