Staff at Oxfordshire hospitals are being reminded to save energy as health managers try to keep the lid on spiralling costs.

The cost of energy rose by 60 per cent last year, making the total anticipated energy cost for Oxford Radcliffe Hospitals NHS Trust £6m a year - about half for electricity.

At a time when the trust is facing a deficit of £35m, trust managers say it is crucial staff try to limit energy costs, which are expected to rise to £8.5m this financial year.

Medical staff and administrators at the John Radcliffe Hospital, the Radcliffe Infirmary and the Churchill Hospital in Oxford, and the Horton Hospital in Banbury, have been reminded of the importance of good housekeeping to reduce energy bills.

Mervyn Phipps, deputy director of estates, said: "Even a small reduction across the trust will really help - a five per cent reduction in total energy use could save us in the region of £300,000.

"The aim is to eliminate waste, not to lower standards."

Energy-saving measures include: * Switching off lights and computers when staff are not in the office * Not using unauthorised kettles, heaters or other appliances * Not leaving taps running * Turning off lights in corridors during the day * Using extractor fans for the minimum possible time * Turning off heating from May to October, and in winter, turning off the heating in outpatient, and non-clinical areas at weekends.

Mr Phipps said that since 2004, the trust had invested almost £1m in energy conservation schemes, including improved monitoring and controls of heating and ventilation plant at the John Radcliffe and Horton hospitals, and using low-energy light bulbs where possible.

The trust was also looking at options including solar power and wind turbines at the John Radcliffe to try to reduce energy costs.

A combined heat and power plant, which creates in-house electricity from gas, has been used at the Radcliffe Infirmary site since 1993, and is now being considered for the JR.

The trust has already joined a consortium of more than 100 large trusts, which bulk-buys energy in advance through the NHS Purchasing and Supply Agency, cutting the cost by up to nine per cent.

Estates directors estimate that they have already made energy savings of up to £1m, through measures like low energy lightbulbs.