A hospital trust has increased its bed capacity after warning patients they could face long wait times in chairs and hallways.

Dartford and Gravesham NHS Trust has urged people to keep its A&E for emergencies, such as serious injuries or life-threatening illnesses, as it faced an "extremely busy" period.

The trust – which runs Darent Valley Hospital in Dartford – said its staff were seeing "very high demand" and were "doing all they can" for those in their care.

A statement published online last week added: "It is possible that patients will wait long hours in chairs or hallways and, if admitted, be placed in one of our temporary wards".

It asked for the post to be shared widely and told people to consider other health services as an alternative.

A spokesman for the trust has since confirmed that the hospital has increased its bed capacity to cope with the mounting pressures.

They said: "Our A&E is extremely busy, following very high demand for our services over the Christmas and New Year period.

"Our teams have worked hard and been successful in ensuring there have been very few ambulances handover delays and as a trust, we have increased our bed capacity to deal with the increased demand.

"However, this has meant that some patients, with less urgent conditions, may have waited longer to be seen and some will have been admitted onto a temporary ward area.

"We apologise to anyone who has been affected and we offer assurance that our focus on delivering high quality and safe care is unwavering.

"We urge the public to use all health services available and keep our A&E for emergencies such as serious injuries or life-threatening illness.

"We will continue to prioritise emergency cases but those that are not an emergency are likely to face longer waiting times.

"NHS 111, local pharmacies, GP and urgent treatment centre (UTC) are all alternatives for less urgent situations."