Oxfordshire County Council has been rated among the worst in England for 'bed blocking', according to a top-level report.

The county ranked fifth out of 150 councils for preventing delayed discharges from acute hospital beds, by a Commission for Social Care Inspection report.

It is the responsibility of social services to offer home support or care home places for people who cannot look after themselves.

But many are forced to stay in hospital long after being treated because alternative care is not available.

The figure of 69 delays per week per 100,000 people aged over 65 was more than twice the national average and more than twice the average for English shire counties.

Acute bed delays increased by 28 per cent on 2005/06, with delayed transfers from acute beds to other wards included in the figure.

Labour group leader Barbara Gatehouse said: "This administration must be held accountable for the misery it has imposed on older people and for the financial burden it has imposed on our local NHS."

Bed blocking last hit the headlines in 2001, when experts warned cuts in elderly and disabled care would put pressure on emergency services and hospital waiting lists.

The Oxfordshire Health Authority at the time demanded more money to tackle the issue.

In September this year the council admitted that 45 people waited an average of 48 days for council-funded care.

A spokesman for the Oxford Radcliffe Hospitals said: "Over the past few weeks, we have had an average of 60 patients waiting to leave - over two wards full of patients who need not be in our beds. The figures are particularly worrying at this time of year when we see an increase in hospital admissions."

Paul Purnell, head of social care for adults, said: "We are planning to support ward staff to prepare patients with complex needs for discharge rather than passing them on to a separate discharge team. This should speed the process up."