Workers at a cash-strapped hospital trust have been warned they face losing their jobs.

Several staff at Brighton and Sussex University Hospitals NHS Trust have received letters saying they are "at risk" of being made redundant.

The trust has already said it plans to shed 325 posts to help save money but previously insisted it did not expect to make full-scale redundancies.

The move comes in the same week The Argus revealed the trust, which is responsible for the Royal Sussex County Hospital in Brighton and the Princess Royal Hospital in Haywards Heath, has paid more than £500,000 to external consultants to bring its finances under control.

It needs to save £12 million this year and £25 million by 2008.

The consultants recommended a wide range of cost-cutting measures which include reducing the trust's workforce.

GMB union official Charles Harrity said he had been contacted by members last week about the letters and he planned to speak to them over the next week to find out more.

He said: "It is a matter of concern for us because all along the trust has being saying it would avoid redundancies through natural wastage, but if this is an indication of what is to come then we need to keep a close eye on developments." Mr Harrity also criticised the amount of money spent on consultants. He said: "It is quite atrocious. We are dealing with possible redundancies and all this money is being spent on bringing external teams in.

"How much does this equate to in terms of patient care?"

There are between 700 and 800 GMB members at the trust's hospitals, including nurses, healthcare assistants, domestic staff, radiography workers, clerical staff and medical records workers.

A trust spokeswoman confirmed the letters had been sent.

She said: "It does not mean they will be automatically losing their jobs. They are a warning that there may be some posts reduced in their department. We are still committed to working to avoid redundancies and reduce the number of posts through natural wastage and turnover."

It emerged earlier this year that Surrey and Sussex Healthcare, which runs Crawley Hospital, paid out more than £700,000 to consultants for its services.

Brighton and Sussex, Surrey and Sussex and the Royal West Sussex NHS Trust, which runs St Richard's Hospital in Chichester, all had turnaround teams of external consultants sent in after the Department of Health ruled they were not managing to get their finances under control.

Worthing and Southlands Hospitals NHS Trust voluntarily brought in a team to sort out its problems.

Leading union Amicus this week heavily criticised the amount paid to management consultants and said it was plunging the NHS further into debt. General secretary Derek Simpson said the hiring of private consultants was "political dogma gone mad".

He said: "We have to combat the philosophy that private is best. Not only is private provision detrimental to patients, it is costing taxpayers millions of pounds."

Assistant general secretary Gail Cartmail said: "The biggest tragedy in all of this is that the morale of health professionals is at an all-time low.