THE head of the area's hospital health trust has been handed the biggest pay rise of all the NHS' hospital chief executives according to a national investigation.

Sir Andrew Morris, chief of Frimley Health NHS Foundation Trust - comprising Heatherwood, Wexham and Frimley Park Hospitals - has been given a £35,000 increase, taking his earnings up to £215,000, according to the Daily Telegraph.

The finance director, Martin Sykes, also received a 19 per cent, or £25,000, increase in his earnings taking them to £155,000.

The highest annual earnings reached a reported £340,000, despite earlier pledges by the Government that most senior NHS managers would have their pay frozen.

A total of 40 per cent of trusts increased executives' wages by at least £5,000 during 2014-15.

A spokesman for Frimley Health said: "Recent salary adjustments in executive pay at Frimley Health were a reflection of the added responsibility associated with the acquisition of Heatherwood and Wexham Park Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust. These were independently assessed by the Hay Group and set by a committee of non-executive directors.

"When Frimley Park Hospital NHS Foundation Trust, which was rated by the Care Quality Commission as ‘outstanding’, took over Heatherwood and Wexham Park Hospitals, the trust doubled in scale in terms of staff, infrastructure, and the number of patients treated.

"The Heatherwood and Wexham Park trust was in special measures when the acquisition took place and has since seen its performance significantly improve.

"The bonuses in the 2014-2015 annual report relate to performance of the trust during 2013-2014, a year when the trust became the first in the country to be rated as outstanding by the CQC."

Some managers’ earnings rose by almost a quarter, the findings from more than 200 NHS trust boards showed.

Sir Andrew was knighted in last year's New Year Honours List for more than 40 years' service to the NHS.

He was appointed general manager of Frimley Park in 1989 before becoming chief executive in 1991.

Bosses brought together Heatherwood and Wexham Park Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust and Frimley Park Hospital NHS Foundation Trust to create Frimley Health NHS Foundation Trust on October 1, 2014.