A hospital trust has just missed out on a £100,000 cash windfall after failing to hit a target to end long waits in casualty.

East Sussex Hospitals, Royal West Sussex Hospitals and Worthing and Southlands Hospitals have secured the bonus for treating 97 per cent of emergency patients within four hours of admission.

But Brighton and Hove University Hospitals, which runs the Royal Sussex County Hospital, fell short. It dealt with only 95.4 per cent of its 28,805 patients within the target time in the three months up to December.

The trust now has just three months to improve performance or face being marked down in the annual star ratings handed out to all NHS hospitals. Only hospitals that achieve top marks in the ratings can apply to win independence from Whitehall control by becoming a foundation trust.

The newly-published figures show that Worthing and Southlands Hospitals had the best record in Sussex, treating 97.9 per cent of its 14,511 patients within four hours.

East Sussex Hospitals treated 97.3 per cent of its 24,219 patients within four hours. Royal West Sussex Hospitals treated 96.9 per cent of 11,566 on time, which was considered to be close enough to the target.

Health minister Rosie Winterton said the figures show waiting times have hugely improved across the country.

She added: "Despite continuing high demand for emergency services, 19 out of 20 people are seen, diagnosed, admitted and treated within four hours in A&E. This is just one example of how the NHS is getting better, with people receiving faster, quicker, personalised treatment."

The crackdown on long waits has been dogged by allegations that ambulance staff are deliberately delaying taking patients into casualty until the hospital is ready for them.

But a Department for Health spokesman insisted cases of so-called "ambulance queuing" were very rare.

She said: "The clock measuring how quickly the patient is treated starts ticking 15 minutes after the ambulance arrives on the hospital concourse."