Health bosses have called on families and residents to get involved in the fight to keep free IVF at Southend Hospital.

The rallying cry comes five weeks ahead of the deadline day in which the governing body will decide on its future.

As part of the consultation, Southend’s Clinical Commissioning Group (CCG) is inviting the committee, patients, stakeholders and clinicians to share their views on the proposal by completing the questionnaire.

The plan is to ditch the one free round of IVF available - a lifeline to so many couples struggling to conceive.

Dr José Garcia Lobera, chairman of NHS Southend Clinical Commissioning Group, was keen to stress no decision had been made.

He said: “The consultation concludes on October 26 and all the views and information gathered will be collated into a report for our Governing Body to consider at a meeting, in public, in December.

“A decision will be made at that meeting as to whether we will make any changes to the current funding arrangements for IVF and other assisted conception treatments for patients in Southend.

“We would like to thank the hundreds of people who have already taken part in the consultation and would welcome further feedback from local people on this important issue.”

The Echo reported in June this year how due to tightening financial situation the Clinical Commissioning Group was looking to cut IVF funding altogether.

The Group currently funds one cycle of IVF treatment for couples who are having difficulty having a baby.

This is currently offered to about 50 patients in Southend every year, and costs about £200,000.

The treatment has success rates of between two percent and 32 percent. Therefore the CCG believe there is a need to consider the value of funding IVF compared with other NHS treatments and services.

The proposed new policy will still allow patients to be referred to hospital for infertility investigations and treatments.

However, following these investigations the CCG will no longer fund patients requiring specialist treatments, if the plans are eventually given the nod.

Only patients undergoing treatments, that have significant likelihood of making them infertile, or those who suffer with chronic viral infection, such as HIV, will be eligible.

If the proposal is accepted it would only apply to new referrals made from the date of the governing body decision. Also the Individual Funding Request (IFR) process will still be available to patients in “exceptional circumstances” and there is the possibility the treatment will be restored once CCG’s financial position improves. Find the form online at survey monkey.co.uk/r/sosivf