A rift has opened between people campaigning for better hospital services in Dover.

It follows the Kent County Council health overview scrutiny committee meeting on Friday at which councillors called on the various authorities to work together to find a central site in the town “for community hospital services”.

The East Kent Hospitals Trust had put forward two options for the Buckland Hospital site, one for refurbishing part of the hospital at a cost of £8 million, and the other to provide a new building costing £11 million.

But neither option includes accident and emergency facilities, or in-patient beds apart from maternity.

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Councillors have called on the trust to work with the East Kent Coastal Primary Care Trust and Dover District Council to find a possible site by the end of August.

The recommendation came at the end of the meeting at which campaigners, and former Patient and Public Involvement Forum members Lorraine Sencicle and Reg Hansell, put the case for a hospital in Dover.

Afterwards, Mrs Sencicle said she was delighted that it had been agreed that “Dover is to have an £8 million new community hospital.”

But Mr Hansell said he believed they had only gone for more health services, not a new hospital.

“I am still campaigning for a general hospital, probably at Whitfield, with the maximum amount of parking, a heliport and all the trimmings,” he said.

Mrs Sencicle, who said she was “deeply sorry” that Mr Hansell had taken this stance, is due to address the district council’s scrutiny committee on Tuesday.

Another campaigner, Pauline Major, is continuing to collect signatures for a petition calling for “a proper hospital” for Dover. More than 12,000 signatures have been gathered.

See this week's Dover Mercury for full story.