Campaigners fighting to keep alternative medicine on the NHS will learn if they have been successful next week.

West Sussex Health Authority will decide on Wednesday whether to continue paying tens of thousands of pounds a year for homeopathic remedies.

The Mid Sussex Homeopathic Group, which has led the campaign, believes the service is vital and has helped hundreds of people across the county.

The group is backed by the British Homeopathic Association and the Royal London Homeopathic Hospital.

More than 1,300 people signed a petition against the proposed cuts, which was presented to the health authority board last year. Authority chief executive Candy Morris, who received the petition, will chair Wednesday's meeting.

Campaigners are supported by Arundel and South Downs MP Howard Flight, who said patients should be allowed to have a choice on what services they wanted.

The Mid Sussex group runs a clinic in Burgess Hill which takes referrals from patients who insist it provides a vital service.

Chairman Peter Mitchell said campaigners were quietly hopeful of success.

He said: "We have presented our evidence as clearly as we can and believe we have argued our case well.

"Since we began taking NHS patients about 18 months ago, about 60 GPs have referred cases to us. If they believe the service has value to it then why not the health authority?

"It is basically about giving people a choice. Homeopathic remedies have become increasingly influential and more and more people are turning to them."

If the authority decides to make the cuts, people will have to pay for their homeopathic treatment. Homeopathy involves using highly diluted forms of natural substances to stimulate the body's healing process.

It has been included in NHS funding since the Forties.

Campaigners met Sheena Parker, the health authority's director of public health and innovation, earlier this month.

Dr Parker has also sought the views of local community health councils and is due to give a report on her findings at Wednesday's meeting.

Homeopathy and other alternative medicines have increased in popularity in the last decade with thousands of people opting for a change from conventional treatment.

The health authority insisted its proposals would still allow people currently receiving treatment to continue and that it would consider paying for some individual and exceptional cases.