Secretary of State for Health Jeremy Hunt has backed calls to extend the opening hours of the urgent care centre at Chase Farm Hospital.

The centre, in The Ridgeway, in Enfield, opened in October 2013 to treat people with non-life threatening injuries.

Open 12 hours a day, the centre was intended to take the strain off of Barnet and North Middlesex Hospital’s accident and emergency units following the closure of Chase Farm Hospital’s casualty department in December last year.

Now Enfield North MP Nick de Bois and Enfield Southgate MP David Burrowes have both called for the centre to extend its opening hours to cope with the demand.

The pair made their case in a meeting with Mr Hunt and senior NHS officials, focusing on the winter pressures it is set to face.

Mr de Bois said: "As we approach winter it's important that residents have increased access to urgent care and I think we made a strong case to NHS London and the minister for extending the opening hours at Chase Farm. I expect a decision soon."

Mr Burrowes added: "It is good to have secured government support for considering an extension and allocating extra money for our local NHS over the winter. Now we need local doctors to give their approval as soon as possible.”

Mr Hunt said: "The evidence presented by both Nick de Bois and David Burrowes does demonstrate that a further expansion of hours may be justified to not only help meet any possible winter pressures but also on a permanent basis.

“They have tirelessly fought for their constituents on this issue and I am pleased the clinical commissioning group is giving serious consideration to their proposals. It is important decisions are made very soon."

Enfield Clinical Commissioning Group, which will make the decision on the possible extension of hours, has stated that no decision has been made as it continues talks with Royal Free Hospital, which took control of Chase Farm in July 2014.

A spokeswoman for the group said: “The priority for Enfield CCG is to ensure our residents have the right access to urgent care, at the right time and the right place. We continually review our services, and as part of our work on winter resilience planning we are looking at a number of areas such as the possibility of extending the opening hours of the Urgent Care Centre at Chase Farm Hospital.

“We are in discussion with the Royal Free London NHS Foundation Trust, who run Chase Farm – however the decision on this has not yet been made. Once the decision has been made, the outcome, including any changes that may be made as a result, will be fully communicated to Enfield residents.”

A Royal Free spokesman added: “Enfield Clinical Commissioning Group is reviewing the opening hours of the urgent care centre at Chase Farm Hospital with the Royal Free London NHS Foundation Trust.”