A STRIKING victory for commonsense has been announced regarding the A&E department at Solihull.

This was due for downgrading to a minor injuries unit.

However, after pressure from residents and MPs there has been a U-turn and the local Primary Care Trust (PCT) and acute hospital trust have produced plans to keep it open.

Solihull is less than eight miles from Heartlands Hospital.

Looking back to the original plans for Worcestershire, the A&E department at Redditch should have been downgraded to a local emergency centre. This did not happen due to local protest.

Also the A&E department at City Hospital (Dudley Road Hospital), Birmingham, was due for closure, but that plan was cancelled.

There are plans to sustain three hospitals with emergency services in realistic and fair partnership in the north east.

Thus the message has got through that citizens' needs for local emergency services must be met.

The Solihull change of plan has come from the local PCT and hospital trust and not from health ministers true to Mr Milburn's stated aim of decentralisation.

Therefore, it is now up to our own PCT with the Worcestershire Acute Hospitals NHS Trust whose members are aware of the inaccessible and all-too-often unsatisfactory hospital care we receive at Worcester, to produce plans urgently for developing the services at Kidderminster to remedy this unacceptable situation and to alleviate the problem of under-capacity for the rest of the county.

You can influence these trusts by requesting your own GP to exert pressure on the PCT and by speaking or writing to the non-executive directors of the trusts.

Chris Nicholls (c/o WHAT, Worcestershire Royal Hospital, Charles Hastings Way, Worcester WR5 1DD) is the only local non-executive director on the hospital trust.

The following are directors of the Wyre Forest PCT (c/o Kidderminster Hospital, Bewdley Road, Kidderminster): Peter Cox, Patricia Henderson, Stella Keysell, Carol Warren and Flora Wright.

I have enjoyed opening the lovely new outdoor play area at Sebright Cygnets Nursery and the splendid new library at St John's Middle School.

There, I joined in an impressive celebration with contributions from students about their own reading interests and discoveries culminating in the release of hundreds of red, white and blue balloons at the moment I struggled to cut an enormous symbolic ribbon across the door.

I also attended a useful exploratory meeting with representative of the board, staff and supporters at Kidderminster Harriers.

This was a frank and open discussion and helped me to understand the problems.

Another meeting is planned and, hopefully, if we have some conclusions, a press release may be possible.