THREATENED hospital chaplaincy services in the county have received a slight reprieve thanks to the league of friends at the county's three hospitals.

Health chiefs at Worcestershire Acute Hospitals NHS Trust, which is more than £30m in debt, sparked outrage in August when they announced they were planning on reducing the three full time and four part-time chaplains - who provide support at Worcestershire Royal Hospital, the Alexandra Hospital in Redditch and Kidderminster Hospital - to one full-time chaplain in a bid to save money.

But after discussions with local church leaders and the friends groups, the friends have agreed to underwrite the costs of providing one full-time chaplain this year (2006/7) and next year (2007/8), bringing the total to two across the three sites.

In addition, local church leaders will together launch a fund-raising appeal which, it is hoped, will generate significant extra money for hospital chaplaincy services.

Chairman of the trust Michael O'Riordan said: "We have been able to work together to find a solution which enables us to hit our savings target as far as chaplaincy services are concerned and - at the same time - secure a better service than might otherwise have been possible until well into 2008. I would like to thank everyone who has made a positive contribution to reaching this agreement.

"By the end of the period covered by this pact it is our intention that, with the trust in a position of sustainable financial balance, we would be able to pick up the costs of the chaplaincy service once more."

Pat Fisher, chairman of Worcestershire Acute Hospital NHS Trust's patient and public involvement forum (PPIF), said: "I am delighted to hear that at least some of the service has been saved.

"I think it's a vital service that is needed to provide a whole patient experience, along with treatment."

Under the terms of the agreement, both full-time chaplains (one Anglican, one Free Church) who currently provide chaplaincy services for the acute trust sites will remain in full-time employment with the trust.

A third full-time Anglican chaplain currently employed by the acute trust spends 75 per cent of his working week providing services for Worcestershire Mental Health Partnership Trust and is expected to transfer and continue providing services for that organisation.

The contracts of the four part-time chaplains will not be continued under the agreement.