A PUBLIC meeting to discuss the future of a County Durham hospital ward will be held tonight.

Campaigners fighting to keep Ward 6 at Bishop Auckland Hospital open will air their views at the meeting, hosted by the town's MP Helen Goodman.

The meeting will be held at Bishop Auckland Methodist Church, in Cockton Hill Road, at 6.30pm.

Sue Jacques, chief executive of County Durham and Darlington NHS Foundation Trust has confirmed she will be attending.

The ward was given a temporary reprieve last week when the trust confirmed the closure would be paused until a meeting on November 15.

More than 2,000 people have also signed a petition against the closure of the 'step down' ward.

The Northern Echo will be covering the meeting and bring you the latest updates as they come in.