The NHS waiting list in England has risen to its highest level in nearly a year, according to the latest official figures published by NHS England on 12 November 2026.

An estimated 7.38 million treatments were waiting to be carried out at the end of September, relating to about 6.24 million patients. The total was up slightly from 7.37 million treatments at the end of August and was the highest since October 2025, when the list stood at 7.40 million treatments. The waiting list reached a record high of 7.77 million treatments in September 2023.

Long waits increase

The figures also show a rise in the number of people waiting more than a year to start routine hospital treatment. An estimated 116,353 people had been waiting for more than 52 weeks at the end of September, up from 113,339 at the end of August. That represents 1.6 per cent of patients on the waiting list, up from 1.5 per cent the previous month.

There was some improvement in shorter waits. Almost 66 per cent of patients on the list had waited less than 18 weeks, the highest proportion since September 2021 and above the 65 per cent interim target set by the government and NHS England. The NHS also delivered a record number of diagnostic scans and tests for September.

The British Medical Association, which analysed the figures, noted that the waiting list has now risen for a third consecutive month and has grown by around 270,000 since March. It said the data showed there was a lot of work to do before the government's March 2029 deadline for more than 90 per cent of patients to be seen within 18 weeks.

Record A&E attendances in October

Emergency departments faced record demand in October. A record 2.50 million people visited A&E departments in England during the month, the first time monthly attendances have passed two and a half million. Some 74.0 per cent of patients were seen within four hours, down slightly from 74.4 per cent in September.

The Society for Acute Medicine said 57,840 patients waited more than 12 hours in emergency departments from the decision to admit them to admission in October, an average of 1,866 people every day and a 6.5 per cent increase on the same month last year. Its president, Dr Vicky Price, described the figures as deeply concerning as the NHS heads into winter.

Corridor care also reached its highest level since recording began. An average of 3,558 patients received care in corridors each day in October, including 2,718 in A&E departments and 840 in other hospital areas. That was up from a revised average of 3,310 patients a day in September and the highest figure in the six months since the data started being collected in May 2026.

Winter pressure ahead

Health Secretary Yvette Cooper said this autumn has been the busiest ever for the NHS, with record numbers of people attending A&E and record numbers of elective appointments and treatments. She warned that pressure on the health service would intensify as winter approaches, despite improvements in some areas of care.

The figures were published alongside preparations for winter, including a £40 million programme announced earlier this month to help GPs give extra support to up to 300,000 vulnerable patients, and £190 million allocated to help the NHS manage additional pressures over the winter.

Ambulance services also faced their busiest month on record in October, according to NHS England, underlining the scale of demand across urgent and emergency care as winter begins. Sources: British Medical Association: NHS backlog data analysis and Society for Acute Medicine.