A NEW birthing pool which has sat unused at a Hampshire maternity hospital for the past four months should be in operation next month.

The news will be music to the ears of local mums-to-be who have been wondering if they would be able to use the two existing two pools at Princess Anne Hospital in Southampton.

As reported in the Daily Echo, a birthing pool installed in the hospital's birthing centre last October has been in almost constant use, with some women also using an older pool on the labour wards.

But a third £5,900 state-of-the-art pool bought by the hospital's league of friends volunteers had sat unused since March because health chiefs could not afford to get in plumbed in.

Now Hampshire building firm Drew Smith has stepped in to speed up the installation.

The Hedge End based company will be picking up the estimated £7,000 bill by co-ordinating the work and completing much of the project itself.

It is hoped expectant mothers will be able to use the new pool by the end of August.

Drew Smith bosses contacted Southampton University Hospitals NHS Trust, which runs the hospital, after reading an article in the Daily Echo last month, highlighting the hold-up.

The front page story explained how the pool had been purchased by the league of friends, but no money had been raised for installation - and the hospital's building budget for the year had been committed to other projects.

Stuart Munro, Drew Smith's managing director, said: "When we saw the story about the Southampton unit, we knew we had to help.

"My own two children and another director's children were born at the unit and we appreciated the efforts made by the staff on behalf of parents and especially the mothers and babies in their care.

"We decided to do whatever was necessary to get the birthing pool installed as quickly as possible and it should be in operation by mid to late August."

As well as putting the pool in place, the project involves changing windows in the room to obscured glass, installing non-slip flooring and decorating the room with a suitable colour scheme.

Plumbing firm BA Corry Ltd and electrical contractors Reavey and Son Ltd have also agreed to give their services free of charge.

Peter Campion, spokesman for Southampton University Hospitals NHS Trust, said: "We are delighted they are stepping in to help. Community support is really important to us, and this is great news for mums-to-be."