THE closure of Chepstow police station to the public is the latest in a long line of services withdrawn from the town and should not go ahead, say members of the town council.

The council says the front desk at the police station will join the minor injuries unit at Chepstow Community Hospital, Sunday opening for pharmacies, the magistrates' and county courts, the ambulance station, the register office and the forensic science laboratory that have all closed in Chepstow over the last eight years.

There is also anger in Caldicot over the loss of clinics from the town's Gray Hill surgery.

The plans to close the front desks at Chepstow, Caldicot and 16 other police stations were initially announced three weeks ago and town councillors in Chepstow are furious over what they say is a lack of consultation.

Gwent Police Authority approved the move last week "with the proviso that Police Authority members, the public and other stakeholders will be asked about the service re provision before the changes are implemented in July," said a Gwent Police spokesman.

Hilary Beach said: "I'm very upset this service has been with­drawn. We've had the withdrawal of our Sunday pharmacies and the minor injuries unit and a lot of other services.

"I'm appalled that this town has had so many services withdrawn. We should be protesting loudly."

David Dovey told the town council: "We had no indication this was coming."

Phyl Hobson said: "We should write to the chief constable expressing our dismay about the lack of consultation."

Chepstow is a "key settlement" in the Welsh Government's Wales Spatial Plan which influences how money is spent by the Assembly.

Key settlements should, where appropriate, func­tion as service and employment hubs for the surrounding area.

Henry Hodges said: "All that has happened since the Wales Spatial Plan was published is that we have lost services."

Tony Easson, who chaired the meeting of the Severnside area committee in Caldicot said the withdrawal of osteopathy services from the town was another blow to the area.

He said: "There are 30,000 people in this area and all we are seeing is services being withdrawn and people expected to travel to Newport to access services which should be available locally."

A spokesman for the Aneurin Bevan Health Board said: "Three clinics were withdrawn from Gray Hill Surgery.

"Two of these (gynaecology and general sur­gery) were withdrawn because the visiting doctors had retired.

"The third was an orthopaedic clinic which was withdrawn because of increased specialism in orthopaedics – we now have specialists in feet, hands, elbows, the back, and knees etc.

"This means that it would have been highly likely a patient would have needed to be referred to yet another specialist for their particular problem.

"GPs are best placed to make the referral to the right specialist, first time, thus avoiding the need for the patient to attend two appointments."