WARRINGTON Hospital is celebrating a successful year of patient care after waiting times dropped to the lowest ever levels.

At a briefing session held by North Cheshire Hospitals NHS Trust chief executive Ian Dalton, achievements and developments across both hospital sites in Warrington and Halton over the past 12 months were highlighted.

Mr Dalton confirmed that the hospitals have treated all patients more quickly than ever before; ensuring no patients wait more than nine months for admission or 17 weeks for an outpatient appointment; seen all suspected cancer patients within two weeks of an urgent GP referral; and ensured that more than nine out of 10 patients are seen in the A&E department within four hours.

He said: "This has been a significant achievement for the trust and it is a credit to our caring and committed staff that we continue to reduce waiting times for treatment. However, we recognise that we can never allow ourselves to become complacent and will continue to strive to do even better for patients."

In addition to meeting key service targets, the trust has made improving its financial position one of its top priorities. Thanks to the continued efforts of staff the trust has ended the year £1 million better than the target agreed with Cheshire and Merseyside Strategic Health Authority.

Mr Dalton listed the highlights of the past 12 months at Warrington as being the ongoing work to build a new accident and emergency department and the opening of a surgical assessment unit, allowing GP and surgical referrals to be seen in a dedicated area.