King George Hospital’s A&E department met its four-hour waiting target for the first time in four years, the trust running it has announced today.

In July 95.6 per cent of the thousands of patients who visited King George and Queen’s Hospitals, in Goodmayes and Romford respectively, were seen, treated and admitted or discharged within four hours.

It is the first time in four years the target was met over a whole month.

Consultant Ayo Ahonkai said: “This is a huge achievement for the organisation, and something that we could only do by working as a team.

“We are so pleased that patients are seeing the benefits.”

Emergency waiting times at Barking, Havering and Redbridge University Hospitals Trust’s (BHRUT’s) hospitals, have been steadily improving since the beginning of the year,

Both A&E departments came under pressure this winter and in December the percentage of patients seen within four hours fell to 76.8pc – the lowest in the four year period.

Dr Ahonkai added: “There is such a positive atmosphere in our Emergency Departments now – not just amongst our patients, but also amongst staff. Now we will be working hard to sustain this performance so that our patients continue to receive the fast, safe service they deserve.”

Clinical commissioners plan to downgrade the A&E department at King George Hospital to an urgent care centre and centralise services at Queen’s Hospital once it is safe to do so.

Campaigners had cited the consistently missed A&E targets as one reason why the plan should not go ahead.

A range of changes were brought in to reduce waiting times in the departments.

Chief operating officer Sarah Tedford said: “I’m delighted that the new initiatives we have put in place have made a real difference to our patients.”

A&E waiting times were also one of the areas highlighted for improvement by the Care Quality Commission when it visited the trust’s hospitals in March this year.

In its report, published in July, it said that although the trust should remain in special measures significant improvements had been made since its last inspection in 2013.