HospitalCheck

Cambridge University Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust

Cambridge, CB2 0QQ · 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
65.6% within 18 weeks · standard 92% · About this data
A&E
Below NHS standard
68.0% within 4 hours · standard 95% · About this data
Cancer
Below NHS standard
75.1% treated within 62 days · standard 85% · About this data
Diagnostics
Below NHS standard
25.7% 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

Cambridge University Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust reported 17,438 A&E attendances in September 2026, with 68% of patients seen within four hours. In August 2026, 60,401 patients were on the waiting list, and 65.6% were seen within 18 weeks of referral. Staff survey data from 2025 showed that 74.5% would recommend the trust to friends or relatives.

Automatically generated from the official figures on this page and checked to restate only those figures. Last generated 9 October 2026. This is a plain-English summary, not medical advice. About these summaries

CQC-registered locations of this trust

Trust performance

Treated or seen within 18 weeks
65.6%
National median: 65.8%
▲ 7.8 pts vs yr agoBetter than 48% of trustsData: Aug 2026
Typical (median) wait
11.7 wks
National median: 12.2 wks
▼ 2.7 wks vs yr agoBetter than 63% of trustsData: Aug 2026
Patients on the waiting list
60,401
National median: 39,285
▼ 5,719 vs yr agoData: Aug 2026
Waiting over a year
724
National median: 364
▼ 1,847 vs yr agoBetter than 33% of trustsData: Aug 2026
A&E patients seen within 4 hours
68.0%
National median: 73.3%
▼ 3.6 pts vs yr agoBetter than 25% of trustsData: Sep 2026
A&E attendances
17,438
National median: 14,631
▲ 1,025 vs yr agoData: Sep 2026
12-hour trolley waits
262
National median: 228
▼ 166 vs yr agoBetter than 46% of trustsData: Sep 2026

A&E performance

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

A&E attendances
17,438
All department types · latest month
Seen within 4 hours
68.0%
All department types · NHS standard: 95%
Waited over 12 hours
262
From decision-to-admit ('trolley waits')
Emergency admissions
3,464
All department types · latest month
Major A&E only (Type 1)
Attendances
11,809
Seen within 4 hours
53.6%

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)17,43868.0%
Type 1 — major A&E11,80953.6%
Type 3 — minor injury / UTC5,62998.4%

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

Cancer waiting times

Latest month: August 2026.

Faster diagnosis (28 days)
82.9%
2,032 of 2,452 treated in time
Target 75% · meets target
Treatment within 62 days
75.1%
201 of 268 treated in time
Target 85% · below target
Treatment within 31 days
92.9%
787 of 847 treated in time
Target 96% · below target
Treated within 62 days
Urgent referral to first treatment
70%80%Apr 25Jan 26NHS standard 85%75.1%73.5%April 202573.6%May 202572.2%June 202566.3%July 202572.5%August 202570.4%September 202568.9%October 202574.4%November 202574.1%December 202565.6%January 202668.4%February 202672.8%March 202668.7%April 202670.1%May 202671.6%June 202679.2%July 202675.1%August 2026
Faster diagnosis (28 days)
Referral to diagnosis or ruling-out
70%80%90%Apr 25Jan 26NHS standard 75%82.9%80.0%April 202576.3%May 202576.2%June 202573.8%July 202573.4%August 202569.4%September 202581.9%October 202585.1%November 202585.6%December 202582.9%January 202689.1%February 202686.8%March 202680.3%April 202684.0%May 202683.8%June 202686.1%July 202682.9%August 2026
Treated within 31 days
Decision to treat to first treatment
80%90%Apr 25Jan 26NHS standard 96%92.9%86.3%April 202586.1%May 202579.8%June 202581.9%July 202582.2%August 202580.5%September 202582.2%October 202575.3%November 202578.6%December 202577.2%January 202680.8%February 202679.9%March 202679.7%April 202686.5%May 202684.8%June 202686.6%July 202692.9%August 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: August 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
92.6%
Rated care 'good' or 'very good'
% would not recommend
3.2%
Rated care 'poor' or 'very poor'
Responses
1,875
Number of patients who gave feedback
Response rate
24.4%
Responses as a share of those eligible
Urgent & emergency care (A&E)
% would recommend
81.9%
Rated care 'good' or 'very good'
% would not recommend
10.5%
Rated care 'poor' or 'very poor'
Responses
1,117
Number of patients who gave feedback
Response rate
16.0%
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
74.5%
Agreed · 2025 NHS Staff Survey▼ 2.6 pts vs 2024Median English trust: 63.9%
Staff engagement
6.90
out of 10 · 2025
Would recommend as a place to work
64.5%
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
396
elective ops cancelled on the day, non-clinical reasons
Not rebooked within 28 days
103
the NHS standard is a new date within 28 days
% not rebooked in time
26.0%
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 days of 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
90.8%
933 occupied of 1,027 open
Adult critical care occupancy
70.3%
52 occupied of 74 open
Ambulance handovers over 30 minutes
22.5%
of 11,028 handovers, winter 2025-26
Ambulance handovers over 60 minutes
13.1%
of 11,028 handovers, winter 2025-26
Medically fit but not discharged
149
patients/day who no longer met the criteria to reside but stayed in hospital, week to 29 March 2026
Discharged when fit
27%
of 1,442 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
6
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 189 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
50.7%
Share of those sampled who responded
Respondents
189
Of 376 sampled
Confidence & trust in staff (antenatal care)
8.3/10
About the same as most trusts
Kindness & compassion (labour & birth)
9.3/10
About the same as most trusts
Involved in decisions about care (labour & birth)
8.5/10
About the same as most trusts
Got help from staff when needed (in hospital, after the birth)
6.5/10
Worse than most trusts
Confidence & trust in your midwife (postnatal care at home)
8.4/10
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.

Addenbrooke's Hospital
D41.4/100
East of England (North)
Domain grades (patient-centred)
Hyperacute assessmentB
Specialist pathwayD
ReperfusionC
MDT assessmentD
Therapy intensityD
Therapy frequencyD
Standards by dischargeC
Case ascertainment AAudit 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)

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

Addenbrooke's HospitalBest-practice 44.4%506 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 534 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
45.8%
Share of those sampled who responded
Respondents
534
Of 1,250 sampled
Quality of information while waiting to be admitted
7.9/10
National average: 7.6/10
About the same as the national average
Cleanliness of your room or ward
8.8/10
National average: 8.9/10
About the same as the national average
Confidence and trust in the doctors
9.1/10
National average: 9.0/10
About the same as the national average
Confidence and trust in the nurses
8.6/10
National average: 8.9/10
About the same as the national average
Enough nurses on duty
7.4/10
National average: 7.6/10
About the same as the national average
Involved in decisions about your care and treatment
6.9/10
National average: 7.2/10
About the same as the national average
Given enough privacy when examined or treated
9.3/10
National average: 9.4/10
About the same as the national average
Given enough notice about when you would leave hospital
6.4/10
National average: 6.9/10
About the same as the national average
Knew what would happen next with your care, before leaving hospital
6.6/10
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 346 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
37.8%
Share of those sampled who responded
Respondents
346
Of 950 sampled
Overall experience of A&E
7.1/10
National average: 7.3/10
About the same as the national average
Told how long you'd wait to be examined
1.9/10
National average: 2.6/10
About the same as the national average
Kept updated on your waiting time
2.5/10
National average: 3.4/10
About the same as the national average
Doctors and nurses listened to you
8.5/10
National average: 8.3/10
About the same as the national average
Confidence and trust in the doctors and nurses
8.6/10
National average: 8.1/10
About the same as the national average
Involved in decisions about your care
7.5/10
National average: 7.4/10
About the same as the national average
Test results explained before you left
7.1/10
National average: 7.5/10
About the same as the national average
Felt safe around other patients
7.9/10
National average: 7.8/10
About the same as the national average
Told how to care for your condition at home after leaving
7.2/10
National average: 6.8/10
About the same as the national average
Treated with respect and dignity
8.4/10
National average: 8.3/10
About the same as 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 955 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
955
Who took part
Overall rating of care
9.1/10
National average: 8.9/10
Better than 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
89%
National average: 84%
Better than the national average
Involved as much as wanted in treatment decisions
85%
National average: 80%
Better than the national average
Confidence and trust in the team during hospital care
81%
National average: 78%
About the same as the national average
Always treated with respect and dignity in hospital
88%
National average: 88%
About the same as the national average
Possible side effects explained understandably
75%
National average: 74%
About the same as the national average
Given enough information about signs of cancer returning or spreading
64%
National average: 65%
About the same as the national average
The whole care team worked well together
90%
National average: 89%
About the same as the national average
Got the support needed from your GP practice since diagnosis
45%
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)
23.4
Oxford Score, case-mix-adjusted, 0-48 scale
Raw gain (unadjusted): 23.6
Patients
182
Modelled records — completed the questionnaire before & after
% who improved
99.5%
Oxford Score higher after surgery than before
EQ-5D Index gain (adjusted)
0.48
General health, secondary measure, 0-1 scale
Knee replacement
Average health gain (adjusted)
16.5
Oxford Score, case-mix-adjusted, 0-48 scale
Raw gain (unadjusted): 16.9
Patients
168
Modelled records — completed the questionnaire before & after
% who improved
94.0%
Oxford Score higher after surgery than before
EQ-5D Index gain (adjusted)
0.30
General health, secondary measure, 0-1 scale

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

Diagnostic test waits

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

Waiting 6+ weeks for a test
25.7%
of 15,535 patients on the diagnostic waiting list
TestWaiting list6+ weeks6+ weeks (count)13+ weeks
Urodynamics20051.5%10373
Ultrasound5,11537.5%1,916687
MRI4,05730.9%1,25249
Respiratory physiology9629.2%282
Cardiology1,35224.2%327134
Neurophysiology46421.3%993
Audiology67719.9%13541
Cystoscopy11619.0%227
Colonoscopy1,0115.2%531
Gastroscopy8793.1%272
CT scan7722.5%193
DEXA Scan5592.3%132
Barium Enema701.4%10
Flexi Sigmoidoscopy1660.0%00
Waiting 6+ weeks for a diagnostic test
All tests combined
10%20%30%40%Apr 25Jan 2625.7%10.1%April 20257.1%May 20256.7%June 20256.7%July 20259.3%August 202510.2%September 20259.2%October 202513.5%November 202523.6%December 202527.3%January 202624.2%February 202629.9%March 202637.9%April 202632.6%May 202627.5%June 202626.6%July 202625.7%August 2026

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

Safety: infections

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

InfectionCases (12 mo)Hospital-onset
MRSA bacteraemia106
C. difficile19595
E. coli bacteraemia474110
MSSA bacteraemia15468
Klebsiella bacteraemia17789
Pseudomonas bacteraemia7338
Hospital-onset cases per month
All infections combined
20304050Dec 23Jan 25Jan 264428December 202334January 202437February 202430March 202426April 202436May 202436June 202441July 202432August 202434September 202436October 202435November 202438December 202437January 202536February 202538March 202526April 202533May 202531June 202531July 202540August 202534September 202543October 202524November 202547December 202545January 202618February 202624March 202627April 202639May 202625June 202636July 202644August 2026

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

Mortality (SHMI)

12 months to May 2026.

As expected
0.99
SHMI value (1.00 = as many deaths as expected) · 2,235 deaths vs 2,265 expected
SHMI over time
Rolling 12-month value
0.901.00Dec 18Jan 20Jan 21Jan 22Jan 23Jan 24Jan 25Jan 26As expected (1.00)0.990.87December 20180.86January 20190.85February 20190.85March 20190.84April 20190.84May 20190.84June 20190.84July 20190.84August 20190.84September 20190.84October 20190.85November 20190.84December 20190.86January 20200.86February 20200.86March 20200.86April 20200.87May 20200.87June 20200.87July 20200.88August 20200.88September 20200.88October 20200.88November 20200.88December 20200.89January 20210.89February 20210.90March 20210.91April 20210.91May 20210.92June 20210.91July 20210.91August 20210.91September 20210.94October 20210.92November 20210.91December 20210.90January 20220.90February 20220.91March 20220.91April 20220.92May 20220.93June 20220.94July 20220.95August 20220.96September 20220.97October 20220.97November 20220.98December 20220.99January 20230.99February 20230.98March 20230.98April 20230.97May 20230.97June 20230.98July 20230.98August 20230.99September 20230.97October 20230.98November 20230.97December 20230.96January 20240.96February 20240.96March 20240.97April 20240.99May 20240.98June 20240.98July 20240.98August 20240.98September 20240.98October 20241.00November 20241.01December 20241.01January 20251.01February 20251.01March 20250.99April 20250.98May 20250.98June 20250.98July 20250.97August 20250.98September 20250.99October 20250.99November 20250.97December 20250.97January 20260.97February 20260.97March 20260.99April 20260.99May 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: August 2026 · Source: NHS England Referral to Treatment statistics (incomplete pathways)

SpecialtyWaitingWithin 18 wksMedian wait9 in 10 wait under52+ wks65+ wks78+ wks
Other - Medicals8,35280.2%8.1 wks27.6 wks200
Other - Paediatrics4,76769.6%11.4 wks33.3 wks51135
Gynaecology4,69150.7%17.7 wks47.9 wks237272
Trauma and Orthopaedic4,46258.0%15.1 wks39.6 wks1620
Other - Surgicals4,28172.6%8.9 wks34.7 wks2900
Dermatology4,08464.5%10.6 wks38.2 wks600
Ophthalmology3,85366.6%12.0 wks35.0 wks1000
Oral Surgery3,63544.4%20.9 wks46.1 wks9300
Ear Nose and Throat3,48155.0%15.6 wks45.3 wks12040
Cardiology2,90658.0%15.0 wks39.5 wks4240
Urology2,42968.0%11.3 wks33.8 wks710
Neurosurgical2,26364.9%12.4 wks37.1 wks3110
Plastic Surgery2,14064.2%11.8 wks38.5 wks300
Rheumatology1,82485.1%7.6 wks23.1 wks000
General Surgery1,61652.6%16.9 wks41.5 wks2111
Neurology1,58674.4%11.0 wks28.1 wks100
Gastroenterology1,56388.4%5.5 wks22.8 wks200
Other - Others86873.0%8.1 wks32.7 wks500
General Internal Medicine79834.7%25.9 wks50.2 wks4800
Respiratory Medicine67796.2%7.2 wks14.3 wks000
Elderly Medicine10998.2%7.2 wks14.1 wks000
Other - Mental Healths1631.3%20.0 wks44.7 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.