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NHS · Waiting times · England · August 2026

How long do people wait for planned treatment?

Half of the 7.37 million pathways waiting in August 2026 had waited 12 weeks or less, but 35% had waited longer than the 18 weeks patients are promised, and 113,339 more than a year. Year-long waits are down by 74% from their peak, but were in the hundreds in 2013.

Evidence last reviewed 3 October 2026

Then and now Official statistics · UK Facts calculation of the change

July 2015 → July 2026 · England

Same hope. A longer wait.

Denise wants to get back to comfortable walks. Her story shows two separate referrals, eleven years apart. Over that period, the national median wait before planned inpatient or day-case treatment rose from 9.2 to 13.0 weeks.

Denise is fictional. These are national figures across specialties, not her medical record or a prediction of her wait.

July 2015: Denise, earlier picture
Denise in 2015 on a doorway bench with walking shoes. National median referral-to-treatment wait for admitted cases: 9.2 weeks.
View full-size image: Denise, July 2015

Denise, July 2015

Denise in 2015 on a doorway bench with walking shoes. National median referral-to-treatment wait for admitted cases: 9.2 weeks.Read the text in this picture (July 2015)
July 2026: Denise, later picture
Older Denise in a different room with a walking jacket in 2026. Another referral; national admitted-case median 13.0 weeks, 3.8 weeks longer (+41%).
View full-size image: Denise, July 2026

Denise, July 2026

Older Denise in a different room with a walking jacket in 2026. Another referral; national admitted-case median 13.0 weeks, 3.8 weeks longer (+41%).Read the text in this picture (July 2026)

3.8 extra weeks before treatment (+41%)

National median for cases admitted for treatment in those months.

  • July 2015: 9.2 weeks. July 2026: 13.0 weeks.
  • Two separate referrals — not an eleven-year wait.

Why 13 weeks here and 12 elsewhere? This story measures the wait completed by cases admitted for treatment that month. The 12-week figure measures time already waited by cases still on the list. They describe different groups.

Sources and calculations: Denise, July 2015 vs July 2026

NHS England’s median wait from referral to the start of planned inpatient or day-case treatment, for cases admitted in July 2015 and July 2026, all specialties, England. A median is the middle value: half of these cases waited longer, half less.

Median wait before planned inpatient or day-case treatment, England, all specialties
MeasureJuly 2015July 2026Change
Completed admitted (unadjusted) RTT pathways: median weeks from referral to treatment9.227129458794588 (shown as 9.2)13.0094696969697 (shown as 13.0)+3.8 weeks (+41%)

How it is calculated

  1. Difference = 13.0094697 − 9.2271295 = 3.782340238175113 weeks.
  2. Increase = (13.0094697 ÷ 9.2271295 − 1) × 100 = 40.99151588872614%.
  3. Shown as 9.2, 13.0, 3.8 and +41%.

Definitions, geography and dates

  • Measure: completed admitted pathways, unadjusted — people whose referral-to-treatment (RTT) clock stopped because they were admitted for inpatient or day-case treatment in that month. The same unadjusted definition is used for both dates; the historic adjusted series that allowed clock pauses is not spliced in.
  • Geography: England, all specialties. July 2026 figures were published by NHS England on 10 September 2026.
  • This is not the 12.0-week median shown elsewhere on this page, which is the time already waited by incomplete pathways (cases still on the list) at the end of July 2026. The two measures describe different groups and are not one series.

What this does not show

  • The data count pathways (cases), not necessarily unique people; one patient can have several pathways.
  • It is not a forecast for a new referral, a knee- or condition-specific wait, an ethnicity-specific outcome, a guarantee of treatment or a prediction of recovery.
  • Denise’s two referrals are separate illustrations, not one eleven-year wait.
  • Provider reporting gaps, case mix and RTT reporting changes limit strict like-for-like interpretation. The July 2026 press notice lists missing providers, and national median estimates do not impute their waiting-time distributions. Community-service pathways were removed from RTT from February 2024.
  • The long-term change is descriptive. It does not show that one policy caused it or that all NHS services have worsened.

Sources

Cells used: NHS England RTT overview time series (July 2026): Full Time Series!Z112 (July 2015) and Z244 (July 2026), dates in C112 and C244; column Z is the completed-admitted unadjusted median wait.

Text of the two pictures

The people are fictional and the portraits are AI-generated. The pictures and these figures are a dated snapshot approved on 4 October 2026; they are updated together, never one without the other.

July 2015 picture

Large July 2015 data-date label. Younger Denise in a teal cardigan seated on the doorway bench holding walking shoes. Denise, a fictional Black British woman, holds walking shoes and hopes planned care will help her return to comfortable walks. England July 2015 national median referral-to-treatment wait for completed inpatient/day-case cases: 9.2 weeks. All-specialty benchmark, not her medical record.

Text in the picture

  • UK Statpack. NHS • England. Data date July 2015.
  • Meet Denise. She wants her walks back.
  • Denise needs planned hospital care. She hopes treatment will get her walking comfortably again.
  • The national benchmark: 9.2 weeks. Median wait before treatment. From referral to planned inpatient or day-case care.
  • A shorter wait to get life moving again.
  • Denise is fictional. Figures cover all specialties, not her medical record. Median for cases admitted for treatment that month; not a waiting-list forecast. Source: NHS England RTT time series to July 2026, released September 2026.
  • UK-STATPACK.CO.UK/NHS

July 2026 picture

Large July 2026 data-date label. Recognisably older Denise with greyer curls, a navy cardigan and rust top, in a sitting room beside a garden window, walking jacket on her lap. An older Denise faces another referral eleven years later. The same wish: return to her walks. England July 2026 national median referral-to-treatment wait for completed inpatient/day-case cases: 13.0 weeks, about 3.8 weeks or 41% longer than July 2015. Two separate fictional referrals, not one eleven-year wait.

Text in the picture

  • UK Statpack. NHS • England. Data date July 2026.
  • Denise, eleven years on. Same hope. A longer wait.
  • Another referral. The same wish: get back to her walks.
  • The national benchmark: 13.0 weeks. Median wait before treatment. From referral to planned inpatient or day-case care.
  • Worse: 3.8 extra weeks (+41%). Compared with July 2015.
  • Two separate referrals, 11 years apart. Denise is fictional. Figures are national medians across specialties, not her medical record. Cases admitted for treatment that month; not a waiting-list forecast. Source: NHS England RTT time series to July 2026, released September 2026.
  • UK-STATPACK.CO.UK/NHS

The length of the queue is not the length of the wait

A list of 7.37 million says how many treatments are waiting, not how long each person waits. In July 2026 the median wait was 12.0 weeks; one pathway in twelve had waited longer than 38.4 weeks (the 92nd percentile, which would be 18 weeks if the standard were met). These two figures are from an earlier month than the rest of this page and are being updated.

The list is a balance of flows. In the year to July 2026, new referrals (clock starts) per working day rose 3.0% and completed pathways rose 2.5% — operations and other admitted treatment fell 2.6% while outpatient completions rose 3.8%. With referrals growing almost as fast as treatment, the list shrinks only slowly. Some of the fall also comes from validation: removing people who no longer need treatment or have been treated elsewhere.

A pathway is one referral for one treatment. NHS England estimates about 85 people for every 100 pathways, so 7.37 million pathways means about 6.2 million people.

The longest waits

How many people wait more than a year?

Year-long waits have fallen from 436,127 to 113,339, far above the 2010s

Incomplete RTT pathways where the patient had waited more than 52 weeks, England, end of each month, thousands.

England · August 2007 to August 2026

1996–2026 displayed window · observations only. Shading marks years outside the displayed record.

Thousands of pathwaysNo observations shown0k200k400k600k800k200020102020113.3k
Waits of over a year were common when the series began in 2007 and had almost disappeared by 2013. They returned with the pandemic, peaking at 436,127 in March 2021, and have fallen by about 74% since — the clearest improvement in the data. Each of these pathways is a person waiting more than a year for treatment, often in pain or unable to work.

England · August 2007 to August 2026 · Official statistics

Sources, definitions and data — Year-long waits have fallen from 436,127 to 113,339, far above the 2010s
Geography:
England
Measure:
Thousands of pathways
Period:
August 2007 to August 2026
Status:
Official statistics
Calculation:
As published, including estimates for missing trusts; divided by 1,000.
Compare with:
The 2010s low: 295 in June 2013
Not included / breaks:
In 2007–08 the 18-week standard was still being introduced and reporting was less complete.

Source: NHS England, Referral to treatment (RTT) waiting times: overview time series including estimates for missing trusts. Chart NHS-04.

View the data as a table
MonthOver 52 weeks
Aug 2007578,682
Aug 2008140,727
Aug 200933,016
Aug 201020,889
Aug 201119,938
Aug 20122,352
Aug 2013350
Aug 2014688
Aug 2015855
Aug 20161,219
Aug 20171,935
Aug 20183,569
Aug 20191,468
Aug 2020111,093
Mar 2021436,127
Aug 2021295,362
Aug 2022390,852
Aug 2023395,170
Aug 2024282,664
Aug 2025190,499
Aug 2026113,339

Cancer

How quickly does cancer treatment start?

72% start cancer treatment within 62 days of an urgent referral, against an 85% standard

Share of patients starting first cancer treatment within 62 days of an urgent suspected-cancer referral, screening or consultant upgrade (combined 62-day standard), England, monthly.

England · April 2022 to August 2026

1996–2026 displayed window · observations only. Shading marks years outside the displayed record.

Per cent treated within 62 daysNo observations shown0%50%100%20002010202085% standard71.9%
The combined 62-day measure has improved from about 69% in 2022 to 71.9% but remains well short of 85%. On the 28-day Faster Diagnosis Standard — being told whether you have cancer — 78.6% were told within 28 days in August 2026, against an 80% target. The older urgent-referral measure last met its 85% standard in December 2015.

England · April 2022 to August 2026 · Official statistics (latest months provisional)

Sources, definitions and data — 72% start cancer treatment within 62 days of an urgent referral, against an 85% standard
Geography:
England
Measure:
Per cent of patients treated
Period:
April 2022 to August 2026
Status:
Official statistics (latest months provisional)
Calculation:
As published. Combined measure introduced October 2023 and back-calculated to April 2022; the older urgent-GP-referral series is not joined to it.
Compare with:
85% standard; NHS England target 80% for every trust by March 2027

Source: NHS England, Cancer waiting times: national time series. Chart NHS-13.

View the data as a table
MonthWithin 62 days (%)
Apr 202269.0
May 202265.5
Jun 202264.1
Jul 202265.7
Aug 202265.3
Sep 202264.2
Oct 202264.0
Nov 202265.1
Dec 202266.3
Jan 202359.3
Feb 202362.5
Mar 202367.5
Apr 202365.0
May 202362.7
Jun 202363.1
Jul 202365.6
Aug 202365.9
Sep 202363.5
Oct 202363.2
Nov 202365.5
Dec 202366.2
Jan 202462.7
Feb 202464.2
Mar 202468.9
Apr 202467.0
May 202466.2
Jun 202467.8
Jul 202468.0
Aug 202469.5
Sep 202467.4
Oct 202468.5
Nov 202469.8
Dec 202471.7
Jan 202567.6
Feb 202567.2
Mar 202571.4
Apr 202570.1
May 202568.1
Jun 202567.3
Jul 202569.5
Aug 202569.3
Sep 202568.0
Oct 202569.0
Nov 202570.5
Dec 202572.1
Jan 202668.6
Feb 202668.9
Mar 202672.9
Apr 202670.0
May 202669.6
Jun 202669.9
Jul 202671.2
Aug 202671.9

Twenty years of the 18-week standard

Share of pathways waiting under 18 weeks, England, monthly, against the 92% standard

Same source and definitions as NHS-02 on the NHS page. Scale 0–100%.

1996–2026 displayed window · observations only. Shading marks years outside the displayed record.

Per cent of pathwaysNo observations shown0%50%100%20002010202092% standard65.2%

2007–2012: the target era. The 18-week referral-to-treatment standard was introduced with a deadline of the end of 2008, backed by extra funding and capacity. Waits fell fast: the share under 18 weeks rose from 57% when the series began to over 90%, and year-long waits almost disappeared.

2012–2020: slow slippage. With funding growing slowly and demand rising, the standard was last met in September 2015. The list grew from 2.4 million in March 2012 to 4.6 million by February 2020 — the pandemic hit a system that was already falling behind.

2020 onwards: the pandemic and recovery. Planned care largely stopped in spring 2020. The list rose to a peak of 7.77 million in September 2023 and has fallen since, while the 18-week share has risen to 65.2%. NHS England’s target is 70% by March 2027 and the 92% standard by March 2029.

What would change it is compared on the NHS page — see What would move the needle?

Sources and methods (3)

Method notes

  • Incomplete pathways at the end of each month, consultant-led care, England, including NHS England estimates for non-reporting trusts.
  • Median and 92nd-percentile waits exclude estimates for missing trusts.
  • Community-service pathways were removed from February 2024.