In August 2013 inspectors from the Care Quality Commission found some patients were not being treated with respect, nutritional needs were not being met and records were not being completed.

They also highlighted a lack of choice of suitable food and drink for patients – and a previous inspection found national standards of nutritional needs were not being met.

"The type of patient that might use these packs doesn't normally have a big appetite - they just need something simple, which is why I suggested the basics - such as bread, cheese, milk and butter.

The hope is that it will reduce the risk of a patient not eating and drinking properly, one of the potential reasons for early re-admission to hospital.

Visits by the Clinical Commissioning Group and the trust's governors in 2014 found it to be overcrowded with staffing problems and a failure to report incidents.