Angry nurses are refusing to leave a health club without a refund after their luxury spa day was cancelled at the last minute.

The group, who work for the NHS in Dartford, had hoped to enjoy their day being pampered and looked after at the Bannatynes Health Club and Spa at the Eureka Leisure Park in Ashford.

The nurses booked their day via Wowcher several months in advance, they were told while on the way to the club today that it was cancelled due to staff shortages.

But the company has disputed this, and says a staff member only called to see if it could be rearranged, and added that staff from elsewhere were brought in to meet the group's needs.

Nurse Christine Smith was among those who organised the trip, and says it is really difficult for the nurses from the same ward to all be able to get the day off at the same time.

She said: “As you can imagine, we work very hard, and we just wanted a day out, but this has not happened.

“If they came to our hospital and we were short staffed, we would still give them care. So we feel we are not getting the service from this establishment.

“It’s not easy to organise a day off for all 12 of us from the same ward. We’ve paid childminders and for petrol, and agency staff have been brought in to make sure it’s covered.

“This is not the way to go about treating people who have booked a day out in advance. We are not impressed by the service. We want our money back in cash, not in vouchers as we are not coming back.

“We have been waiting for something to happen, but the manager says she is off work today. We don’t want to recommend this place to anyone.”

A Bannatynes Health Club & Spa spokesman said: "We have brought in staff from across the country to make sure this party has its treatments. We hope they enjoy their afternoon. As the services booked are available to them, we will not be offering a refund."

The nurses say they were asked to leave the club by security at 3pm.