HospitalCheck

East Sussex Healthcare NHS Trust

St. Leonards-On-Sea, TN37 7PT · 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
68.6% within 18 weeks · standard 92% · About this data
A&E
Below NHS standard
69.1% within 4 hours · standard 95% · About this data
Cancer
Below NHS standard
69.0% treated within 62 days · standard 85% · About this data
Diagnostics
Below NHS standard
9.3% 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

East Sussex Healthcare NHS Trust reported 13,403 A&E attendances in July 2026, with 69.1% of patients seen within four hours. In June 2026, the trust had 55,850 patients on its waiting list, and 68.6% were seen within 18 weeks of referral.

Automatically generated from the official figures on this page and checked to restate only those figures. Last generated 19 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
68.6%
National median: 66.3%
5.2 pts vs yr agoBetter than 61% of trustsData: Jun 2026
Typical (median) wait
10.7 wks
National median: 11.7 wks
2.2 wks vs yr agoBetter than 67% of trustsData: Jun 2026
Patients on the waiting list
55,850
National median: 39,587
5,689 vs yr agoData: Jun 2026
Waiting over a year
368
National median: 358.5
496 vs yr agoBetter than 50% of trustsData: Jun 2026
A&E patients seen within 4 hours
69.1%
National median: 74.2%
1.0 pts vs yr agoBetter than 27% of trustsData: Jul 2026
A&E attendances
13,403
National median: 14,642
1,532 vs yr agoData: Jul 2026
12-hour trolley waits
246
National median: 194
241 vs yr agoBetter than 45% of trustsData: Jul 2026

A&E performance

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

A&E attendances
13,403
All department types · latest month
Seen within 4 hours
69.1%
All department types · NHS standard: 95%
Waited over 12 hours
246
From decision-to-admit ('trolley waits')
Emergency admissions
3,496
All department types · latest month
Major A&E only (Type 1)
Attendances
10,683
Seen within 4 hours
61.8%

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)13,40369.1%
Type 1 — major A&E10,68361.8%
Type 3 — minor injury / UTC2,72097.6%

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

Cancer waiting times

Latest month: June 2026.

Faster diagnosis (28 days)
83.3%
2,767 of 3,322 treated in time
Target 75% · meets target
Treatment within 62 days
69.0%
198 of 287 treated in time
Target 85% · below target
Treatment within 31 days
95.5%
300 of 314 treated in time
Target 96% · below target
Treated within 62 days
Urgent referral to first treatment
70%80%Apr 25Jan 26NHS standard 85%69.0%71.8%April 202571.3%May 202573.4%June 202572.5%July 202571.8%August 202574.2%September 202579.5%October 202575.8%November 202578.2%December 202574.3%January 202672.6%February 202674.4%March 202664.5%April 202664.0%May 202669.0%June 2026
Faster diagnosis (28 days)
Referral to diagnosis or ruling-out
75%80%85%Apr 25Jan 26NHS standard 75%83.3%81.7%April 202582.0%May 202583.0%June 202582.6%July 202584.0%August 202581.7%September 202583.6%October 202584.9%November 202583.3%December 202579.8%January 202685.8%February 202682.9%March 202677.1%April 202680.9%May 202683.3%June 2026
Treated within 31 days
Decision to treat to first treatment
90%92.5%95%Apr 25Jan 26NHS standard 96%95.5%89.8%April 202589.7%May 202594.9%June 202593.3%July 202589.0%August 202594.2%September 202595.2%October 202596.1%November 202595.5%December 202594.0%January 202695.1%February 202695.0%March 202691.0%April 202694.3%May 202695.5%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
98.4%
Rated care 'good' or 'very good'
% would not recommend
0.6%
Rated care 'poor' or 'very poor'
Responses
319
Number of patients who gave feedback
Response rate
3.8%
Responses as a share of those eligible
Urgent & emergency care (A&E)
% would recommend
81.3%
Rated care 'good' or 'very good'
% would not recommend
12.6%
Rated care 'poor' or 'very poor'
Responses
1,864
Number of patients who gave feedback
Response rate
13.5%
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
61.8%
Agreed · 2025 NHS Staff Survey▲ 1.1 pts vs 2024Median English trust: 63.9%
Staff engagement
6.67
out of 10 · 2025
Would recommend as a place to work
55.9%
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
88
elective ops cancelled on the day, non-clinical reasons
Not rebooked within 28 days
9
the NHS standard is a new date within 28 days
% not rebooked in time
10.2%
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
98.1%
666 occupied of 679 open
Adult critical care occupancy
50.0%
11 occupied of 22 open
Ambulance handovers over 30 minutes
8.4%
of 16,296 handovers, winter 2025-26
Ambulance handovers over 60 minutes
0.8%
of 16,296 handovers, winter 2025-26
Medically fit but not discharged
158
patients/day who no longer met the criteria to reside but stayed in hospital, week to 29 March 2026
Discharged when fit
32%
of 1,619 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
4
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 104 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
35.1%
Share of those sampled who responded
Respondents
104
Of 300 sampled
Confidence & trust in staff (antenatal care)
9.0/10
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)
8.7/10
About the same as most trusts
Got help from staff when needed (in hospital, after the birth)
8.2/10
About the same as most trusts
Confidence & trust in your midwife (postnatal care at home)
8.7/10
About the same as most trusts
Midwife listened to you (postnatal care at home)
8.7/10
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.

Bexhill Hospital - Irvine Unit
D51.0/100
Sussex
Domain grades (patient-centred)
Specialist pathwayA
Therapy intensityE
Therapy frequencyE
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.

Eastbourne District General Hospital
E38.0/100
Sussex
Domain grades (patient-centred)
Hyperacute assessmentD
Specialist pathwayC
ReperfusionE
MDT assessmentD
Therapy intensityD
Therapy frequencyE
Standards by dischargeD
Case ascertainment AAudit compliance B

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

Hip fracture care (NHFD audit)

East Sussex Healthcare NHS 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.

Conquest HospitalBest-practice 62.6%663 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 481 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
41.8%
Share of those sampled who responded
Respondents
481
Of 1,250 sampled
Quality of information while waiting to be admitted
7.5/10
National average: 7.6/10
About the same as the national average
Cleanliness of your room or ward
9.2/10
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
9.1/10
National average: 8.9/10
About the same as the national average
Enough nurses on duty
7.6/10
National average: 7.6/10
About the same as the national average
Involved in decisions about your care and treatment
7.2/10
National average: 7.2/10
About the same as the national average
Given enough privacy when examined or treated
9.5/10
National average: 9.4/10
About the same as the national average
Given enough notice about when you would leave hospital
7.0/10
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 CommissionCQC 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 265 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
29.4%
Share of those sampled who responded
Respondents
265
Of 950 sampled
Overall experience of A&E
6.9/10
National average: 7.3/10
About the same as the national average
Told how long you'd wait to be examined
2.6/10
National average: 2.6/10
About the same as the national average
Kept updated on your waiting time
3.3/10
National average: 3.4/10
About the same as the national average
Doctors and nurses listened to you
7.7/10
National average: 8.3/10
About the same as the national average
Confidence and trust in the doctors and nurses
7.6/10
National average: 8.1/10
About the same as the national average
Involved in decisions about your care
7.0/10
National average: 7.4/10
About the same as the national average
Test results explained before you left
7.0/10
National average: 7.5/10
About the same as the national average
Felt safe around other patients
7.5/10
National average: 7.8/10
About the same as the national average
Told how to care for your condition at home after leaving
5.8/10
National average: 6.8/10
About the same as the national average
Treated with respect and dignity
8.0/10
National average: 8.3/10
About the same as the national average

Source: Care Quality CommissionCQC 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 536 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
536
Who took part
Overall rating of care
8.9/10
National average: 8.9/10
About the same as the national average
Cancer diagnosis explained understandably
75%
National average: 78%
About the same as the national average
Easy to contact your main contact person
82%
National average: 84%
About the same as the national average
Involved as much as wanted in treatment decisions
80%
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
88%
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
61%
National average: 65%
About the same as the national average
The whole care team worked well together
88%
National average: 89%
About the same as the national average
Got the support needed from your GP practice since diagnosis
37%
National average: 45%
Worse than 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)
24.4
Oxford Score, case-mix-adjusted, 0-48 scale
Raw gain (unadjusted): 25.1
Patients
127
Modelled records — completed the questionnaire before & after
% who improved
100.0%
Oxford Score higher after surgery than before
EQ-5D Index gain (adjusted)
0.44
General health, secondary measure, 0-1 scale
Knee replacement
Average health gain (adjusted)
16.9
Oxford Score, case-mix-adjusted, 0-48 scale
Raw gain (unadjusted): 15.6
Patients
94
Modelled records — completed the questionnaire before & after
% who improved
90.4%
Oxford Score higher after surgery than before
EQ-5D Index gain (adjusted)
0.34
General health, secondary measure, 0-1 scale

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
9.3%
of 9,541 patients on the diagnostic waiting list
TestWaiting list6+ weeks6+ weeks (count)13+ weeks
Cardiology1,13521.0%23813
MRI3,34914.1%47111
Ultrasound2,2455.6%12620
CT scan1,6901.7%292
Gastroscopy3300.6%20
Audiology2450.0%00
Colonoscopy3230.0%00
Flexi Sigmoidoscopy1020.0%00
Waiting 6+ weeks for a diagnostic test
All tests combined
10%15%Apr 25Jan 269.3%14.8%April 202516.6%May 202516.5%June 202516.0%July 202515.7%August 202514.0%September 202511.3%October 202511.4%November 202514.6%December 202514.6%January 202612.3%February 202616.9%March 202618.6%April 202613.1%May 20269.3%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 bacteraemia92
C. difficile11251
E. coli bacteraemia38857
MSSA bacteraemia11619
Klebsiella bacteraemia11020
Pseudomonas bacteraemia5715
Hospital-onset cases per month
All infections combined
102030Dec 23Jan 25Jan 261612December 202315January 202410February 202411March 202430April 202414May 202424June 202414July 202416August 202422September 202423October 202414November 202412December 202410January 202510February 202511March 20259April 202517May 20257June 202513July 202518August 20256September 202514October 202517November 202513December 202514January 202612February 202614March 202613April 202614May 202613June 202616July 2026

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

Mortality (SHMI)

12 months to Mar 2026.

As expected
1.06
SHMI value (1.00 = as many deaths as expected) · 2,520 deaths vs 2,370 expected
SHMI over time
Rolling 12-month value
1.001.101.20Dec 18Jan 20Jan 21Jan 22Jan 23Jan 24Jan 25Jan 26As expected (1.00)1.060.97December 20180.96January 20191.22February 20191.20March 20191.16April 20191.13May 20191.10June 20190.95July 20190.95August 20190.94September 20190.95October 20190.96November 20190.97December 20190.98January 20200.98February 20200.97March 20200.96April 20200.96May 20200.96June 20200.97July 20200.98August 20200.97September 20200.97October 20200.96November 20200.96December 20200.96January 20210.96February 20210.96March 20210.98April 20210.99May 20210.97June 20210.97July 20210.97August 20210.98September 20210.96October 20210.96November 20210.96December 20210.96January 20220.97February 20220.98March 20220.99April 20220.98May 20220.98June 20220.98July 20220.98August 20220.98September 20221.00October 20221.00November 20221.00December 20221.00January 20231.01February 20231.01March 20231.00April 20231.00May 20231.00June 20231.00July 20230.99August 20231.00September 20231.00October 20230.99November 20231.00December 20231.00January 20241.01February 20241.00March 20241.02April 20241.01May 20241.01June 20241.02July 20241.02August 20241.02September 20241.03October 20241.04November 20241.03December 20241.04January 20251.03February 20251.04March 20251.04April 20251.06May 20251.07June 20251.07July 20251.07August 20251.07September 20251.07October 20251.06November 20251.07December 20251.07January 20261.07February 20261.06March 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
Trauma and Orthopaedic10,14678.1%8.2 wks32.0 wks10200
Ear Nose and Throat5,48461.4%13.3 wks37.5 wks600
Gynaecology5,36949.8%18.1 wks42.7 wks8731
Urology4,73656.7%14.8 wks43.1 wks6000
General Surgery4,66470.6%10.5 wks37.1 wks2511
Cardiology4,16566.5%12.9 wks32.9 wks1700
Other - Medicals4,01061.7%11.9 wks41.2 wks1900
Ophthalmology3,83682.4%7.9 wks24.6 wks100
Gastroenterology2,44579.0%7.3 wks31.8 wks000
Respiratory Medicine2,37772.1%11.1 wks31.8 wks2200
Oral Surgery1,94851.4%17.5 wks37.5 wks100
Neurology1,88577.7%9.9 wks28.2 wks000
Other - Surgicals1,78977.1%6.6 wks40.0 wks2300
Dermatology94194.0%3.7 wks17.1 wks000
Rheumatology78689.9%6.8 wks22.6 wks400
Other - Others75858.8%15.0 wks33.8 wks100
Other - Paediatrics31674.4%11.5 wks28.2 wks000
Elderly Medicine17697.2%5.2 wks13.6 wks000
General Internal Medicine1989.5%2.1 wks21.5 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.