A £6.9 million cash injection for Royal Surrey County Hospital’s accident and emergency department will enable the busy frontline service to improve facilities and almost double in size.

Guildford’s A&E will increase by 46 per cent to include a new out-of-hours GP assessment unit, and existing facilities for minor emergencies, major medical problems and paediatrics will be re-modelled to improve patient care.

The announcement on Tuesday came after the trust was awarded £1million by the Department of Health to ease pressure in time for next winter. The extra £5.9million is coming from the Trust’s capital plan budget.

Pressure on RSCH’s A&E increased to such an extent over the Christmas period, the hospital issued an appeal to keep its emergency services “free for those who need it”, warning “patients who urgently need help will always be prioritised and this means that those who arrive with minor injuries or illness may face a very long wait”.

Chief executive Paula Head said: “Last winter was really difficult for the trust and as a result we weren’t always able to deliver the patient experience we would have liked in our A&E department.

“Together with our staff, community service providers and social care teams we have put in an incredibly amount of hard work and since March the department has consistently been hitting the target to treat 95 per cent of patients within four hours. I am delighted to say the trust now has one of the best performing A&E departments nationally.

“The project will provide a greater space to assess and treat our most seriously ill patients, as well as providing a more efficient environment for our staff to work in. For our patients, the new increased space will offer a rapid assessment, as well as more dignity and privacy. The GP assessment unit will also have a significant impact on reducing waiting times, by making sure patients can be treated on site.”

A&E will remain operational throughout the works which will be completed in phases to minimise disruption. Building work is already under way, with the GP assessment unit set to be completed by November this year, with the final phase of the project concluded in October 2018.