The highest earner at mental health charity St Andrew’s Healthcare has received an 18 per cent pay rise, its latest accounts show.

The highest earner - thought to be its chief executive Phillip Sugarman - got a pay increase of more than £100,000 last year, taking their package from £552,000 to £653,000 in 2012/13.

Sugarman was among this year's top three earners identified by Charity Finance’s biennial survey of CEOs at the top-100 charities.

Staff costs are analysed as wages and salaries, social security costs and other pension costs.

St Andrew’s Healthcare recorded a 6 per cent income increase for the year ending 31 March 2013, to £178m. The organisation received the majority of its income from fees, but also generated £22,000 in donations in 2012/13, down from £30,000 the previous year.

The charity, which employs around 3,000 people, saw its staff costs increase from £114.6m in 2011/12 to £117.1m in 2012/13. It paid 57 members of staff packages of £100,000 and above in 2012/13, up from 53 the previous year.

The charity also greatly reduced its pension scheme deficit for the year 2012/13 to £600,000, down from £4.7m in 2011/12.

St Andrew’s Healthcare closed its final salary pension scheme on 31 March 2012.

A spokeswoman from St Andrew's Healthcare said that some of the figures in its accounts could be misleading, but was unable to clarify how by deadline.