PLANS to set up a "super" hospital for child accident emergencies would have major implications for Bolton parents.

Proposals for a specialised children's centre -- expected to be an amalgamation of the Royal Manchester Children's Hospital, Pendlebury and Booth Hall -- are under discussion by hospitals throughout Greater Manchester.

Bolton Hospitals NHS Trust is being asked for its comments on plans to create a unit providing all care for children.

Other specialist units would be set up to provide 24-hour medical, surgical and emergency services for children -- but it remains uncertain whether Bolton would be one of these.

Details of where the major hospital and supporting centres would be sited have not yet been revealed.

Bolton Hospitals NHS Trust is considering implications for the Royal Bolton Hospital. Some trust board members fear such a scheme could see the end of its major obstetrics and paediatric facilities.

Peter Powell, director of service development for the Royal Bolton Hospital, said the changes would be "for the good of children's services" and that final plans would not be agreed until at least 2005.

Better

Mr Powell said: "The changes have not yet been made and the plans are about policy, not geography at this stage.

"Bolton people should not be alarmed. The changes are expected to be for the better."

But if the proposals go ahead, children may have to travel to the specialist centres for treatment.

The project is being chaired by Dr Tom Mann, chief executive of the Wigan and Bolton Health Authority.