A mass protest will be held before a public meeting to discuss controversial plans to cut hospital maternity services.

Campaigners are calling for hundreds of people to come to the meeting in Eastbourne tonight to make their views known.

The plans drawn up by health chiefs could lead to consultant-led maternity services being lost at either Eastbourne District General Hospital (DGH) or the Conquest Hospital in St Leonards, with a midwife-led one at the other.

A special care baby unit and inpatient gynaecology service will be based at the hospital that has the full maternity service.

The proposals have been drawn up by Eastbourne Downs and Weald primary care trust (PCT) and Hastings and Rother PCT and a 15-week consultation is now under way.

The meeting is one of several organised by the PCTs over the coming weeks to discuss four options being considered.

Members of the Save the DGH and Hands Off the Conquest campaigners have drawn up their own proposal, called Option Five Saving Lives, which calls for full consultant services to be based at both hospitals.

They warn lives will be at risk if mothers needing urgent help are forced to travel an extra 20 miles for help.

Members are also worried the loss of a core service such as maternity at one hospital could lead to the downgrading of other services in the future.

Save the DGH campaigner Liz Walke(crct) said it was vital to fight for maternity services, not only because of the impact on mothers and babies but because of safeguarding other facilities as well.

She said: "All medical professionals agree that if one core service is downgraded or closed then next goes special care baby units, then paediatrics, then A&E, then all the other core services.

"It is happening up and down the country.

"Also, if you lose a specialty at a hospital, it makes it a less desirable place for doctors to train.

"Lose A&E and our tourism is at stake, young families will not want to live here, businesses will leave and so it goes on.

"We want to see hundreds of people turning up to protest and make their views known. Our option is the only safe option for maternity."

The meeting takes place at the Winter Garden in Eastbourne and starts at 7pm.

Campaigners will be gathered outside beforehand for the protest.

Thousands of people turned out for a Mother's Day protest along Eastbourne seafront earlier last month(MAR) and tens of thousands have signed a petition calling for services to be protected.