HospitalCheck

Bolton NHS Foundation Trust

Bolton, BL4 0JR · Compare with another trust

At a glance

Whether this trust meets each official NHS operational standard — not a combined score or ranking.

Waiting times
Below NHS standard
61.0% within 18 weeks · standard 92% · About this data
A&E
Below NHS standard
72.2% within 4 hours · standard 95% · About this data
Cancer
Below NHS standard
77.4% treated within 62 days · standard 85% · About this data
Diagnostics
Below NHS standard
15.7% waiting 6+ weeks · standard 1.0% or fewer · About this data
Mortality (SHMI)
As expected
Screening indicator, not a death rate — a prompt to investigate, not proof of poor care · About this data

In plain English

AI-generated

Bolton NHS Foundation Trust reported 12,369 A&E attendances in July 2026, with 72.2% of patients treated within four hours. In June 2026, the median waiting time for treatment was 13.8 weeks, and 61% of patients were seen within 18 weeks of referral. The trust had 37,808 patients on its waiting list at that time.

Automatically generated from the official figures on this page and checked to restate only those figures. Last generated 17 August 2026. This is a plain-English summary, not medical advice. About these summaries

Hospitals run by this trust

Trust performance

Treated or seen within 18 weeks
61.0%
National median: 66.3%
▲ 4.1 pts vs yr agoBetter than 14% of trustsData: Jun 2026
Typical (median) wait
13.8 wks
National median: 11.7 wks
▼ 1.3 wks vs yr agoBetter than 16% of trustsData: Jun 2026
Patients on the waiting list
37,808
National median: 39,587
▲ 556 vs yr agoData: Jun 2026
Waiting over a year
444
National median: 358.5
▼ 710 vs yr agoBetter than 42% of trustsData: Jun 2026
A&E patients seen within 4 hours
72.2%
National median: 74.2%
▲ 7.4 pts vs yr agoBetter than 41% of trustsData: Jul 2026
A&E attendances
12,369
National median: 14,642
▲ 105 vs yr agoData: Jul 2026
12-hour trolley waits
445
National median: 194
▲ 184 vs yr agoBetter than 30% of trustsData: Jul 2026

A&E performance

Latest month: July 2026· all A&E department types combined — the official headline basis.

A&E attendances
12,369
All department types · latest month
Seen within 4 hours
72.2%
All department types · NHS standard: 95%
Waited over 12 hours
445
From decision-to-admit ('trolley waits')
Emergency admissions
3,171
All department types · latest month
Major A&E only (Type 1)
Attendances
8,576
Seen within 4 hours
61.5%

The all-types headline above includes minor-injury units and urgent treatment centres (Type 3), which typically report much higher 4-hour performance and lift the combined figure. This narrower figure covers only the main, consultant-led A&E department— Type 1 in NHS England's classification.

Department typeAttendancesWithin 4 hours
All types (official headline)12,36972.2%
Type 1 — major A&E8,57661.5%
Type 3 — minor injury / UTC3,79396.4%

Source: NHS England A&E Attendances & Emergency Admissions. About this data

Cancer waiting times

Latest month: June 2026.

Faster diagnosis (28 days)
81.4%
1,546 of 1,899 treated in time
Target 75% · meets target
Treatment within 62 days
77.4%
124 of 160 treated in time
Target 85% · below target
Treatment within 31 days
99.3%
147 of 148 treated in time
Target 96% · meets target
Treated within 62 days
Urgent referral to first treatment
70%80%90%Apr 25Jan 26NHS standard 85%77.4%87.0%April 202587.7%May 202587.3%June 202583.4%July 202581.7%August 202577.4%September 202580.4%October 202582.9%November 202585.4%December 202579.1%January 202667.8%February 202680.4%March 202683.8%April 202673.8%May 202677.4%June 2026
Faster diagnosis (28 days)
Referral to diagnosis or ruling-out
75%80%85%90%Apr 25Jan 26NHS standard 75%81.4%88.4%April 202589.3%May 202587.7%June 202586.8%July 202584.4%August 202585.8%September 202587.0%October 202587.7%November 202586.6%December 202581.0%January 202684.5%February 202681.6%March 202679.6%April 202681.3%May 202681.4%June 2026
Treated within 31 days
Decision to treat to first treatment
96%98%100%Apr 25Jan 26NHS standard 96%99.3%99.3%April 202596.7%May 202598.6%June 202598.1%July 202596.5%August 202597.9%September 202597.4%October 2025100.0%November 202597.1%December 202598.7%January 202699.1%February 202696.8%March 202697.6%April 202699.2%May 202699.3%June 2026

Source: NHS England Cancer Waiting Times. The 62-day standard is urgent referral to first treatment; the 28-day faster-diagnosis standard is referral to diagnosis or ruling-out. About this data

Patient experience (Friends & Family Test)

Latest month: June 2026· a voluntary, monthly feedback survey — the figure is the share of respondents who rated their experience 'good' or 'very good'. Response rates are often low and respondents are self-selected, not a representative sample, so read this alongside the clinical measures above, not on its own.

Inpatient care
% would recommend
91.9%
Rated care 'good' or 'very good'
% would not recommend
2.8%
Rated care 'poor' or 'very poor'
Responses
1,160
Number of patients who gave feedback
Response rate
23.4%
Responses as a share of those eligible
Urgent & emergency care (A&E)
% would recommend
80.9%
Rated care 'good' or 'very good'
% would not recommend
13.4%
Rated care 'poor' or 'very poor'
Responses
1,195
Number of patients who gave feedback
Response rate
13.8%
Responses as a share of those eligible

Source: NHS England Friends & Family Test. About this data

Staff experience (NHS Staff Survey)

2025 · the views of staff who work at this trust — a measure of workforce culture, morale and confidence, not a direct measure of clinical outcomes. There is no official NHS target for these figures, so they are shown as context, never a pass or fail.

Staff happy for a friend or relative to be treated here
49.9%
Agreed · 2025 NHS Staff Survey▼ 9.4 pts vs 2024Median English trust: 63.9%
Staff engagement
6.49
out of 10 · 2025
Would recommend as a place to work
48.8%
Agreed · 2025

The NHS Staff Survey records the views of staff who chose to respond — a measure of workforce culture, morale and staff confidence, not a direct measure of clinical outcomes or safety. Response rates vary between trusts. England only; Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland run separate staff surveys on a different basis, so these figures are never compared across nations.

Source: NHS Staff Survey (NHS England), Open Government Licence. About this data

Cancelled operations

Quarter ending 30 June 2026· last-minute cancellations for NON-CLINICAL reasons (no bed, no staff, an emergency taking priority) — not cancellations chosen by the patient or on clinical grounds. It's a raw count, so larger trusts naturally cancel more in absolute terms — read this alongside the other measures above, not on its own.

Last-minute cancellations
126
elective ops cancelled on the day, non-clinical reasons
Not rebooked within 28 days
49
the NHS standard is a new date within 28 days
% not rebooked in time
38.9%
share of cancelled ops without a new date inside 28 days

Source: NHS England (QMCO). About this data

Bed occupancy, ambulance handovers & delayed discharges (UEC Daily SitRep)

Snapshot at 8am, 29 March 2026. This is unvalidated management information— NHS England's own label — and can be revised for up to 14 days after first publication. It is collected only during the winter Daily SitRep window, so this is the latest date the collection has published, not necessarily today. It measures operational pressure (how full the hospital is), NOT care quality — high occupancy is normal for NHS hospitals, especially in winter, and is not a safety or performance score. The ambulance-handover figures below cover winter 2025-26 as a period total(not a snapshot): the time from an ambulance arriving to the patient being handed over to A&E staff. The delayed-discharge figures cover the most recent 7 daysof the collection (not a snapshot, and not the whole winter): a patient who "no longer meets the criteria to reside" is medically ready to leave hospital, but how quickly they actually do mostly reflects social-care and community capacity to receive them — NOT the hospital's own clinical quality. A higher handover or delayed-discharge figure means more operational pressure — like the rest of this section, none of it is a measure of care quality, and it carries no colour grading, badge or ranking.

Adult general & acute bed occupancy
90.0%
450 occupied of 500 open
Adult critical care occupancy
66.7%
12 occupied of 18 open
Ambulance handovers over 30 minutes
23.0%
of 9,804 handovers, winter 2025-26
Ambulance handovers over 60 minutes
7.9%
of 9,804 handovers, winter 2025-26
Medically fit but not discharged
113
patients/day who no longer met the criteria to reside but stayed in hospital, week to 29 March 2026
Discharged when fit
29%
of 1,113 who no longer met the criteria to reside, week to 29 March 2026

Source: NHS England UEC Daily SitRep, Ambulance Handover and Acute Discharge SitRep collections. About this data

Never Events (patient safety)

Financial year 2025/26 · Never Events are rare, serious, wholly-preventable incidents. This is a RAW count for 2025/26— it is NOT adjusted for how much surgery the trust does, and NHS England publishes it to prompt learning, NOT to compare trusts. A higher number is a prompt to look at the trust's own review, not proof it is less safe than a trust with fewer.

Never Events reported
1
Occurring in FY 2025/26 · not a comparative safety score

Source: NHS England. About this data

Maternity — patient experience

CQC National Maternity Survey, 2025 · scores are relative comparisons against other trusts, not a measure of absolute quality — based on 110 voluntary respondents (a question is only shown here where at least 30 people at this trust answered it). A lower score is a prompt to look closer, not proof of poor care.

Response rate
30.2%
Share of those sampled who responded
Respondents
110
Of 366 sampled
Confidence & trust in staff (antenatal care)
8.5/10
About the same as most trusts
Kindness & compassion (labour & birth)
9.1/10
About the same as most trusts
Involved in decisions about care (labour & birth)
8.8/10
About the same as most trusts
Got help from staff when needed (in hospital, after the birth)
7.6/10
About the same as most trusts
Confidence & trust in your midwife (postnatal care at home)
8.1/10
About the same as most trusts
Midwife listened to you (postnatal care at home)
8.8/10
About the same as most trusts

Source: Care Quality Commission — National Maternity Survey. About this data

Stroke care (SSNAP audit)

Sentinel Stroke National Audit Programme, latest quarter to 2026· the SSNAP level (A best .. E) is the audit's own published grade for the quality of this team's acute stroke-care PROCESSES, adjusted for case-mix, case ascertainment and audit compliance — it is not a guarantee of any individual patient's outcome. England only; SSNAP also covers Wales and Northern Ireland.

Royal Bolton Hospital
D55.9/100
Greater Manchester
Domain grades (patient-centred)
Hyperacute assessmentB
Specialist pathwayC
ReperfusionE
MDT assessmentB
Therapy intensityC
Therapy frequencyD
Standards by dischargeA
Case ascertainment BAudit compliance D

This team's case ascertainment and/or audit compliance band is D or E — its SSNAP grade above rests on less-complete data than a team with a higher band, not necessarily worse care.

Source: Sentinel Stroke National Audit Programme (Royal College of Physicians). About this data

Hip fracture care (NHFD audit)

Bolton NHS Foundation Trust · National Hip Fracture Database, 2023audit year · "Met best-practice criteria" is the audit's own composite measure of hip-fracture care PROCESSES at each hospital this trust runs.

Royal Bolton HospitalBest-practice 28.1%442 cases

Source: National Hip Fracture Database (Royal College of Physicians). About this data

Patient experience — inpatient care

CQC Adult Inpatient Survey, 2024 · scores are 0-10, and "better"/"worse" means the trust's score falls outside the range expected for a trust of its size (the CQC 95% expected range, centred on the national average) — a statistical-significance test, not a raw ranking. Based on 377 voluntary respondents (a question is only shown here where at least 30 people at this trust answered it). England only; response rates vary between trusts.

Response rate
31.3%
Share of those sampled who responded
Respondents
377
Of 1,250 sampled
Quality of information while waiting to be admitted
6.6/10
National average: 7.6/10
Worse than the national average
Cleanliness of your room or ward
8.7/10
National average: 8.9/10
About the same as the national average
Confidence and trust in the doctors
8.8/10
National average: 9.0/10
About the same as the national average
Confidence and trust in the nurses
8.8/10
National average: 8.9/10
About the same as the national average
Enough nurses on duty
7.5/10
National average: 7.6/10
About the same as the national average
Involved in decisions about your care and treatment
7.0/10
National average: 7.2/10
About the same as the national average
Given enough privacy when examined or treated
9.4/10
National average: 9.4/10
About the same as the national average
Given enough notice about when you would leave hospital
6.9/10
National average: 6.9/10
About the same as the national average
Knew what would happen next with your care, before leaving hospital
6.4/10
National average: 6.7/10
About the same as the national average

Source: Care Quality Commission — CQC Adult Inpatient Survey. About this data

Patient experience — A&E (urgent & emergency care)

CQC Urgent & Emergency Care Survey (A&E), 2024 · scores are 0-10, and "better"/"worse" means the trust's score falls outside the range expected for a trust of its size (the CQC 95% expected range, centred on the national average) — a statistical-significance test, not a raw ranking. Based on 211 voluntary respondents who attended a major (type 1) A&E department (a question is only shown here where at least 30 people at this trust answered it). England only; response rates vary between trusts.

Response rate
23.0%
Share of those sampled who responded
Respondents
211
Of 950 sampled
Overall experience of A&E
6.3/10
National average: 7.3/10
Worse than the national average
Told how long you'd wait to be examined
2.7/10
National average: 2.6/10
About the same as the national average
Kept updated on your waiting time
2.3/10
National average: 3.4/10
About the same as the national average
Doctors and nurses listened to you
8.2/10
National average: 8.3/10
About the same as the national average
Confidence and trust in the doctors and nurses
7.9/10
National average: 8.1/10
About the same as the national average
Involved in decisions about your care
7.1/10
National average: 7.4/10
About the same as the national average
Test results explained before you left
7.4/10
National average: 7.5/10
About the same as the national average
Felt safe around other patients
6.0/10
National average: 7.8/10
Worse than the national average
Told how to care for your condition at home after leaving
6.5/10
National average: 6.8/10
About the same as the national average
Treated with respect and dignity
7.5/10
National average: 8.3/10
Worse than the national average

Source: Care Quality Commission — CQC Urgent & Emergency Care Survey (A&E). About this data

Patient experience — cancer care

National Cancer Patient Experience Survey, 2025 · scores are the % of patients giving the most positive answer (and an overall 0–10 rating), and "better"/"worse" means the trust's score falls outside the range expected for a trust of its size (the survey's 95% expected range, centred on the national average) — a statistical-significance test, not a raw ranking. Based on 178 patients treated for cancer by this trust (a question is only shown here where at least 10 people at this trust answered it). England only; response rates vary between trusts.

Response rate
—
Share of those sampled who responded
Respondents
178
Who took part
Overall rating of care
9.1/10
National average: 8.9/10
About the same as the national average
Cancer diagnosis explained understandably
80%
National average: 78%
About the same as the national average
Easy to contact your main contact person
93%
National average: 84%
Better than the national average
Involved as much as wanted in treatment decisions
82%
National average: 80%
About the same as the national average
Confidence and trust in the team during hospital care
79%
National average: 78%
About the same as the national average
Always treated with respect and dignity in hospital
94%
National average: 88%
About the same as the national average
Possible side effects explained understandably
74%
National average: 74%
About the same as the national average
Given enough information about signs of cancer returning or spreading
62%
National average: 65%
About the same as the national average
The whole care team worked well together
92%
National average: 89%
About the same as the national average
Got the support needed from your GP practice since diagnosis
49%
National average: 45%
About the same as the national average

Source: NHS England (survey run by Picker on its behalf) — National Cancer Patient Experience Survey. About this data

Hip & knee replacement — patient outcomes (PROMs)

Financial year 2024-25(finalised) · patients having a primary hip or knee replacement voluntarily score their health before and after surgery. The average gain shown is adjusted for differences between patients (case-mix) — it is not a raw before/after difference and not a ranking, so read it alongside the patient numbers.

Hip replacement
Average health gain (adjusted)
23.5
Oxford Score, case-mix-adjusted, 0-48 scale
Raw gain (unadjusted): 23.2
Patients
35
Modelled records — completed the questionnaire before & after
% who improved
97.1%
Oxford Score higher after surgery than before
EQ-5D Index gain (adjusted)
0.52
General health, secondary measure, 0-1 scale
Knee replacement
Patients
29
Modelled records — completed the questionnaire before & after
% who improved
96.6%
Oxford Score higher after surgery than before

Source: NHS England PROMs (hip & knee replacement). About this data

Diagnostic test waits

Latest month: June 2026. The operational standard is that under 1% should wait more than 6 weeks.

Waiting 6+ weeks for a test
15.7%
of 5,362 patients on the diagnostic waiting list
TestWaiting list6+ weeks6+ weeks (count)13+ weeks
Audiology1,11346.8%521241
Urodynamics5834.5%209
Cystoscopy27633.7%9330
CT scan62017.6%10920
Gastroscopy3437.3%254
Colonoscopy3814.5%172
Cardiology7324.2%312
MRI9122.1%191
Ultrasound8080.5%41
Flexi Sigmoidoscopy590.0%00
Waiting 6+ weeks for a diagnostic test
All tests combined
5%10%15%Apr 25Jan 2615.7%10.8%April 202513.6%May 202514.8%June 202517.8%July 202514.3%August 202512.7%September 20256.3%October 20254.3%November 20255.0%December 20253.5%January 20262.6%February 20262.6%March 202610.8%April 202611.9%May 202615.7%June 2026

Source: NHS England Diagnostic Waiting Times & Activity (DM01). About this data

Safety: infections

Cases in the 12 months to July 2026. Hospital-onset cases are those most likely acquired in hospital.

InfectionCases (12 mo)Hospital-onset
MRSA bacteraemia81
C. difficile17168
E. coli bacteraemia20931
MSSA bacteraemia8418
Klebsiella bacteraemia4410
Pseudomonas bacteraemia121
Hospital-onset cases per month
All infections combined
51015Dec 23Jan 25Jan 261115December 202316January 20249February 202417March 202415April 202410May 20249June 202414July 202415August 20249September 202413October 202413November 202411December 20246January 202517February 202517March 20253April 202515May 20259June 202515July 202511August 20257September 202513October 202511November 20259December 202516January 202610February 20268March 20269April 202613May 202611June 202611July 2026

Source: UK Health Security Agency mandatory surveillance. About this data

Mortality (SHMI)

12 months to Mar 2026.

As expected
1.12
SHMI value (1.00 = as many deaths as expected) · 1,740 deaths vs 1,550 expected
SHMI over time
Rolling 12-month value
1.001.101.20Dec 18Jan 20Jan 21Jan 22Jan 23Jan 24Jan 25Jan 26As expected (1.00)1.121.19December 20181.20January 20191.19February 20191.16March 20191.16April 20191.18May 20191.17June 20191.16July 20191.16August 20191.16September 20191.16October 20191.16November 20191.16December 20191.18January 20201.16February 20201.17March 20201.18April 20201.18May 20201.18June 20201.19July 20201.18August 20201.18September 20201.17October 20201.17November 20201.15December 20201.14January 20211.12February 20211.10March 20211.12April 20211.10May 20211.11June 20211.12July 20211.13August 20211.13September 20211.14October 20211.15November 20211.17December 20211.18January 20221.10February 20221.08March 20221.07April 20221.07May 20221.07June 20221.08July 20221.07August 20221.07September 20221.07October 20221.08November 20221.07December 20221.10January 20231.09February 20231.10March 20231.10April 20231.10May 20231.09June 20231.08July 20231.08August 20231.08September 20231.09October 20231.08November 20231.11December 20231.11January 20241.13February 20241.15March 20241.15April 20241.15May 20241.17June 20241.18July 20241.19August 20241.19September 20241.18October 20241.18November 20241.18December 20241.14January 20251.15February 20251.13March 20251.14April 20251.12May 20251.10June 20251.10July 20251.09August 20251.08September 20251.08October 20251.09November 20251.10December 20251.12January 20261.11February 20261.12March 2026

The SHMI compares the number of deaths after hospital care with the number expected given patients' characteristics. It is not a death rate and a higher value is a prompt to investigate, not proof of poor care. Source: NHS England. About this data

Waiting times by specialty

Data: June 2026 · Source: NHS England Referral to Treatment statistics (incomplete pathways)

SpecialtyWaitingWithin 18 wksMedian wait9 in 10 wait under52+ wks65+ wks78+ wks
Ophthalmology5,05174.3%9.7 wks31.0 wks2400
Ear Nose and Throat4,43851.7%17.4 wks43.6 wks10400
General Surgery4,15465.6%11.4 wks37.0 wks1200
Gynaecology3,34548.5%18.7 wks43.4 wks7800
Cardiology3,21446.6%19.6 wks43.5 wks1600
Urology2,72259.9%14.4 wks40.7 wks3100
Dermatology2,68071.5%10.6 wks30.3 wks000
Oral Surgery2,39250.7%17.7 wks46.1 wks6300
Other - Medicals2,33069.4%10.5 wks34.9 wks500
Trauma and Orthopaedic2,27551.7%17.4 wks43.9 wks3000
Gastroenterology1,53578.1%8.6 wks28.1 wks100
Respiratory Medicine89677.5%9.3 wks37.3 wks1200
Plastic Surgery72043.3%22.6 wks51.7 wks5400
Rheumatology61484.4%9.3 wks20.5 wks000
Other - Surgicals53148.8%18.4 wks45.7 wks1200
Elderly Medicine43185.4%7.6 wks24.1 wks000
Other - Paediatrics19867.2%12.5 wks33.9 wks000
Neurology17142.1%21.1 wks43.3 wks200
Cardiothoracic Surgery5630.4%25.0 wks43.8 wks000
Other - Others3467.6%12.0 wks21.4 wks000
General Internal Medicine2190.5%9.5 wks18.3 wks000

Figures come from NHS England's official monthly statistics and the CQC directory, reproduced under the Open Government Licence v3.0. See methodology for definitions.