A struggling hospital trust is getting rid of 109 beds and shedding more than 500 posts in a battle to save money.

Brighton and Sussex University Hospitals NHS Trust has been told it has to save an extra £3 million this year on top of the £12 million already planned for.

The cuts are expected to affect posts and wards across the trust, including the Royal Sussex County Hospital in Brighton and the Princess Royal Hospital in Haywards Heath.

Today's news comes as the trust is dealing with more people than ever before at its accident and emergency (A&E) departments and a sharp rise in the number of bed-blocking patients.

Chief executive Peter Coles told board members at a meeting yesterday the trust was facing a difficult time. He said: "We need to be able to make savings while meeting the targets set out for us. The bed closures and some of the post reductions were part of our original plans and so these were expected.

"However we have been told further savings need to be made, which is why we are having to take further steps.

"We are keen to avoid redundancies and will be working closely with staff.

"We are confident of being able to deal with a reduction in bed numbers as we are focusing on shortening the length of time people stay in hospital and increasing the number of day case operations. We should be able to treat the same number of patients with fewer beds."

Other measures planned to save money include:

Reducing the number of consultant appointments by 90 in line with the EU working time directive
*A freeze on new use of bank, agency and overtime work.

*Non-clinical budgets to be cut by ten to 15 per cent.

An upper limit mileage rate of 23p to be introduced for all travel expense claims where public transport is an option.

The trust ended the last financial year £11.3 million in the red and a team of money specialists was sent in to get it back on financial track.

The turnaround plans originally involved saving £12 million this year and shedding about 325 jobs but now the South East Coast Strategic Health Authority has increased the amount to £15 million which it says the trust should be able to cope with.

Exact details of where and when beds and posts will go have not been drawn up but Bailey Ward and Stewart ward at the Royal Sussex are among those considered for closure.

A letter was sent to the trust's thousands of workers on Monday explaining the latest developments.

Managers are expected to begin changes over the next couple of weeks.

A spokesman for Unison said: "This has been on the cards for a while but to learn more jobs are being cut is bad news.

"Staff are already working flat out and are under extreme pressure and now they are being told the news that they are going to be put under even more pressure through cuts."

GMB official Mark Turner said the union would be fighting hard against any more job losses.

Janice Kent from the trust's independent Patient and Public Involvement Forum, said: "This is extremely worrying. We will be seeking reassurances that the trust will be able to carry on providing the best possible care for patients and that they get the right and full treatment they need."