PLANS to build a £36m hospital serving 180,000 people in the New Forest have taken another leap forward.

Hampshire and Isle of Wight Strategic Health Authority yesterday approved the business case for the hospital, which will occupy part of the Ampress site in Southampton Road, Lymington.

The 104-bed complex will be built by New Forest Primary Care Trust and its private finance partner, Sussex-based Ryhurst Ltd.

Trust chairman Anand Chitnis said: "The people of the New Forest have been waiting a long time for this hospital and now, thanks to the strong support of the local community and the League of Friends, it is soon to become a reality."

The hospital was given planning permission earlier this year and is due to open in 2006.

Dr David Balfour, a leading light in the campaign for the facility, said he was delighted that the health authority had approved the scheme.

He added: "I would like to thank all the clinicians and staff who have been involved in putting together the successful business case for the board.

"Everyone has worked extremely hard preparing the plans. We are all very much looking forward to seeing work start in the summer."

Facilities will include a rehabilitation centre, a minor injuries unit, a diagnostic and treatment centre and a six-bed maternity unit.

Known as the Lymington New Forest Hospital, the building will occupy a 9.7-acre site at Ampress Park, formerly the home of Wellworthy Engineering.

Angela Jeffrey, the trust's chief executive, praised the hard work of all the staff involved in the project.

She said: "Our private finance partner has done a fantastic job on designing a 21st-century facility that will enable us to provide state-of-the-art health care."

The long-awaited facility will replace the 90-year-old hospital in Southampton Road, Lymington, and the town's infirmary, which has already closed.