I read both the front-page coverage of the elderly care wards at Brighton General Hospital (The Argus, July 28) and the publication of the reply from South Downs NHS Trust.

You will recall the local NHS held a consultation earlier this year, entitled Best Care, Best Place. Part of that consultation concerned the interim and future provision of local NHS services for older people.

We had overwhelming support for the principle of providing acute hospital care on one site, the Royal Sussex County Hospital in Eastern Road. In turn, it was agreed that community care should be provided closer to patients' own homes.

The local NHS has achieved a considerable part of the proposal set out in Best Care, Best Place by transferring all acute in-patient care to the Royal Sussex site.

The next stage is to develop the community services over the next 12 to 18 months. In the interim, there are two wards which would continue to provide non-acute care on the Brighton General site.

We are grateful to the staff for their efforts in continuing to provide care in the traditional "Nightingale" wards and in working with patients and other organisations to develop the new services outside the hospital.

We are working collaboratively with other NHS organisations in Brighton and Hove, together with independent sector providers, such as Age Concern, the Alzheimer Society and others, as well as with local people.

Together, we will be developing older people's services in Brighton and Hove based on the aspirations outlined in Best Care, Best Place.

-Gary Needle, chief executive, Brighton and Hove City Primary Care Trust