Hospitals in Oxfordshire have been given £1.2m to increase the availability of single-sex accommodation.

The Department of Health allocated the funding to improve accommodation, including washing and bathing facilities to help improve patients’ “privacy and dignity”.

The money has been split between Oxfordshire Primary Care Trust, Oxford Radcliffe Hospital NHS Trust and Oxford Learning Disability NHS Trust.

PCT service manager Jonathan Coombes said: “Privacy and dignity of patients is an issue we take incredibly seriously.

“Our community hospitals largely provide care for older people and we recognise that availability of single-sex accommodation plays an important role in improving the patient experience.”