For the Sponge Cake
Preheat the oven to 350F. Measure the hot freshly boiled water (straight from the kettle), pour into a large bowl and add the chopped dates. Stir and leave until lukewarm.
For the Pudding Sauces Meanwhile, make both the sticky toffee pudding sauce and the extra sauce by heating the ingredients gently in individual pans, whisking regularly, until they briefly boil.
Pour the sticky toffee pudding sauce over the cooked pudding and place under a moderate grill or broiler just until bubbling and sticky looking, roughly 2-3 minutes.