NHS managers have overspent £3.2m in one month as they try to improve services at Oxfordshire's major hospitals.

In October, the Oxford Radcliffe Hospitals NHS Trust, which is responsible for Oxford's John Radcliffe, Churchill and Radcliffe Infirmary, and The Horton in Banbury, recorded a deficit of £10.9m -- a rise from £7.6m in September.

Trust finance director Chris Hurst said: "Every effort is being made to reduce the overspend between now and the year end, by containing costs and making savings."

Despite measures to cut costs in recent months, the overspend is 5.4 per cent more than the budget of £201m.

Managers are trying to secure extra income with help from Thames Valley Health Authority.

But the trust has reduced inpatient waits to a maximum of 11 months -- ahead of the 12-month national target -- and increased beds to help cut casualty waiting times at the JR and Horton. This has lead to a drop in the number of patients who have had to wait more than 12 hours for treatment.

Outpatients are also being seen quicker, and only 550 people have been waiting longer than 13 weeks for an appointment -- down from 1,172 in April.

But the improvements have caused major overspends, and increased spending on pay -- particularly on agency staff -- is a major contributor.

Since April, the trust has spent £13.1m on agency staff.

Mr Hurst added that the trust was investigating taking out loans to tide it over from late January to the end of the financial year.