HOSPITAL and council managers are joining forces to try to prevent a technical blunder delaying the opening of Oxford's new £125m cancer centre.

Planning experts said the opening of the world-leading cancer centre could be jeopardised by a legal error in diverting two footpaths running across the site.

The original paths needed to be diverted due to construction work on the car park for the cancer and haematology centre.

But developers built a wall over part of the proposed new route - meaning the paths had to be diverted again.

Now Oxfordshire County Council is being asked to fast-track the new application - which would usually take three years - to stop it preventing the centre's planned handover to the hospital trust this summer.

A report written by Chris Cousins, the county's head of sustainable development, said: "Unfortunately the city council and the developers did not achieve the necessary diversions before or during the development phase.

"Construction of the centre is on target for handover to the Oxford Radcliffe NHS Trust. However, there will remain serious difficulties in achieving this unless the original planning condition to divert the public footpaths is resolved."

A spokesman for the Oxford Radcliffe Hospitals NHS Trust said officials were confident the matter would be resolved.

She said: "We would like to reassure patients that this will not affect patient care. Cancer services will continue to be provided throughout this development."

And she added there would be no further cost to the taxpayer as the diversion was the developer's responsibility.

But Chris Hall, spokesman for the Open Spaces Society in Oxfordshire, said: "The city council and developers have cocked it up. It is going to be months and months before the procedures are complete - probably about five to six months, but significantly longer if the order is objected to."

Jacquie Pearce-Gervis, chairman of the Oxford Radcliffe Hospital's patient and public involvement forum, said: "It's extraordinary. We hope that it will be resolved as soon as possible. Obviously any hold-up is bad news."

Oxford City Council spokesman Chris Lee said: "It is unfortunate that the developer of this site built a new path in the wrong place and provided us with inaccurate plans.

"The consequent delay meant our powers to divert the paths in question expired."

The cancer and haematology centre will also include 217 beds, an intensive care unit and ten operating theatres, bringing all cancer services in Oxford under one roof for the first time.

A decision on whether to fast-track the application is due to be made by Oxfordshire County Council's planning and regulation committee on Monday.

Committee chairman Steve Hayward said: "Because it is important we have moved it to the head of the queue. But the decision might go one way or another."