The birthing centre at a Powys town's hospital is getting a £120,000 facelift when it closes for more than two months.

The Llanidloes and District War Memorial Hospital will have a completely refurbished birth room with a large new birth pool when work is completed this Spring.

Expectant mums who have a due date during the closure between Monday, January 23 and late March will be offered to give birth at home or at other hospitals.

Llanidloes Hospital. Picture: Geograph.

Llanidloes Hospital. Picture: Geograph.

Shelly Higgins is Interim Head of Midwifery and Sexual Health with Powys Teaching Health Board. She said: “We are delighted to be able to press ahead with this work and we’ve been informing expectant mums about the temporary closure.

"Once the work is completed, the new birth centre will provide a much-improved environment for local mums to have their babies.”

As well as a new pull-down double bed in the revamped birth room, there are also plans to modernise all the bathrooms within the birth centre and replace fittings and fixtures.

For those mums who have a ‘due date’ during the temporary closure, they have been offered support with home births or to give birth in one of the other midwifery-led units at Montgomeryshire County Infirmary in Newtown, The Victoria Memorial Hospital in Welshpool or the Llandrindod Wells Memorial Hospital. Alternatively, they could choose care in Bronglais General Hospital at Aberystwyth, The Princess Royal at Telford or at Wrexham Maelor.

Shelly added: “If any local mums have any concerns or questions about this, please don’t hesitate to contact your named midwife to talk through what would be best for you and your baby.”

All antenatal and postnatal care will be offered at home or in other premises within the hospital during the temporary closure.