Campaigners who thought they had seen off plans to close community hospitals in Oxfordshire have reacted with anger to news that beds are to be closed at five of them.

For the next year, 37 beds will close in a bid to save £25m. Six will be closed in Abingdon, Didcot, Henley, Wallingford and Wantage, and seven in Witney.

The South West and South East Oxfordshire NHS Primary Care Trusts need to make the savings to break even this financial year, but they insist patient care will not suffer.

Didcot resident Roger Woodley, a member of the Patient and Public Involvement Group, said: "It could happen again and again.

"If we get another six beds going, they will say 'There's only 18 beds -- we could move this to Wallingford'."

Mr Woodley said many patients felt it was 'closure by stealth'.

He added the bed closures would also put pressure on major hospitals like the John Radcliffe in Oxford.

Ailsa Granne, a divisional director of the Oxford Radcliffe Hospitals NHS Trust, said: "With regard to the community hospital bed closures, we obviously need to make sure that there isn't a detrimental impact for patients and will therefore be having meetings with the PCTs to discuss the best way to manage our combined resources."

PCT spokesman Alison Brumfitt said there were no plans to completely close any hospitals.

She said: "Changes have been made on the basis of clinical risk.

"The PCTs would like to reassure patients that there will be no delay in their treatment, or impaired levels of care for their needs, as a result of this temporary change."

Abingdon Hospital is the biggest hospital in south Oxfordshire, with 48 beds, but six have been closed for more than a year because of staff shortages. These beds will now remain closed for another year.

In 1999, one of Abingdon hospital's two wards was shut and 24 beds closed because of staff shortages and a cash crisis.

The outlook for the hospital looked bleak, but a vigorous campaign helped save the day.

Twelve beds were reopened and Abingdon Hospital continues to be an important care provider.

In Wantage, the six beds affected are ones that have not been used for several months. Wallingford Community Hospital is to see two more beds closed, adding to the four which have been closed for a year.

Oxford West and Abingdon MP Dr Evan Harris, who was active in the fight against proposed hospital closures last year, said: "No decision should have been made, even in the interim, without full consultation. These are beds that need to be retained to have accessible local services and to take the load off the John Radcliffe."

The Liberal Democrat MP added: "I will be contacting the trusts to find out what is going on."