HospitalCheck

West Hertfordshire Teaching Hospitals NHS Trust

Watford, WD18 0HB · 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
69.1% within 18 weeks · standard 92% · About this data
A&E
Below NHS standard
86.9% within 4 hours · standard 95% · About this data
Cancer
Below NHS standard
80.6% treated within 62 days · standard 85% · About this data
Diagnostics
Below NHS standard
27.0% 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

West Hertfordshire Teaching Hospitals NHS Trust reported 17,729 A&E attendances in September 2026, with 86.9% of patients seen within four hours. In August 2026, 44,404 patients were on the waiting list, and 69.1% were seen within 18 weeks of referral. Staff survey data from 2025 showed that 57.3% 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
69.1%
National median: 65.8%
▲ 5.3 pts vs yr agoBetter than 68% of trustsData: Aug 2026
Typical (median) wait
12.0 wks
National median: 12.2 wks
▼ 1.2 wks vs yr agoBetter than 53% of trustsData: Aug 2026
Patients on the waiting list
44,404
National median: 39,285
▼ 2,542 vs yr agoData: Aug 2026
Waiting over a year
393
National median: 364
▼ 434 vs yr agoBetter than 47% of trustsData: Aug 2026
A&E patients seen within 4 hours
86.9%
National median: 73.3%
▲ 3.1 pts vs yr agoBetter than 85% of trustsData: Sep 2026
A&E attendances
17,729
National median: 14,631
▲ 2,080 vs yr agoData: Sep 2026
12-hour trolley waits
15
National median: 228
▼ 11 vs yr agoBetter than 75% of trustsData: Sep 2026

A&E performance

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

A&E attendances
17,729
All department types · latest month
Seen within 4 hours
86.9%
All department types · NHS standard: 95%
Waited over 12 hours
15
From decision-to-admit ('trolley waits')
Emergency admissions
5,849
All department types · latest month
Major A&E only (Type 1)
Attendances
8,453
Seen within 4 hours
73.1%

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)17,72986.9%
Type 1 — major A&E8,45373.1%
Type 3 — minor injury / UTC9,27699.4%

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

Cancer waiting times

Latest month: August 2026.

Faster diagnosis (28 days)
86.7%
1,557 of 1,795 treated in time
Target 75% · meets target
Treatment within 62 days
80.6%
141 of 175 treated in time
Target 85% · below target
Treatment within 31 days
97.2%
172 of 177 treated in time
Target 96% · meets target
Treated within 62 days
Urgent referral to first treatment
75%80%85%Apr 25Jan 26NHS standard 85%80.6%80.2%April 202578.1%May 202579.0%June 202578.6%July 202579.4%August 202575.1%September 202575.6%October 202583.6%November 202578.8%December 202575.9%January 202676.1%February 202679.1%March 202682.0%April 202684.1%May 202679.9%June 202680.1%July 202680.6%August 2026
Faster diagnosis (28 days)
Referral to diagnosis or ruling-out
75%80%85%Apr 25Jan 26NHS standard 75%86.7%84.9%April 202584.1%May 202585.3%June 202586.8%July 202587.3%August 202582.3%September 202584.4%October 202582.6%November 202582.5%December 202579.5%January 202684.3%February 202681.4%March 202683.0%April 202685.3%May 202683.9%June 202683.9%July 202686.7%August 2026
Treated within 31 days
Decision to treat to first treatment
96%97%98%99%Apr 25Jan 26NHS standard 96%97.2%98.7%April 202597.4%May 202598.3%June 202597.1%July 202598.6%August 202596.1%September 202598.3%October 202599.1%November 202597.9%December 202598.2%January 202699.1%February 202698.5%March 202697.5%April 202699.1%May 202698.0%June 202698.5%July 202697.2%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
98.4%
Rated care 'good' or 'very good'
% would not recommend
0.6%
Rated care 'poor' or 'very poor'
Responses
1,141
Number of patients who gave feedback
Response rate
25.1%
Responses as a share of those eligible
Urgent & emergency care (A&E)
% would recommend
93.9%
Rated care 'good' or 'very good'
% would not recommend
4.0%
Rated care 'poor' or 'very poor'
Responses
148
Number of patients who gave feedback
Response rate
1.8%
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
57.3%
Agreed · 2025 NHS Staff Survey▲ 1.5 pts vs 2024Median English trust: 63.9%
Staff engagement
6.84
out of 10 · 2025
Would recommend as a place to work
59.1%
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
161
elective ops cancelled on the day, non-clinical reasons
Not rebooked within 28 days
31
the NHS standard is a new date within 28 days
% not rebooked in time
19.3%
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
93.6%
541 occupied of 578 open
Adult critical care occupancy
47.4%
9 occupied of 19 open
Ambulance handovers over 30 minutes
19.7%
of 11,646 handovers, winter 2025-26
Ambulance handovers over 60 minutes
2.6%
of 11,646 handovers, winter 2025-26
Medically fit but not discharged
63
patients/day who no longer met the criteria to reside but stayed in hospital, week to 29 March 2026
Discharged when fit
59%
of 1,081 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
3
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 117 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
39.3%
Share of those sampled who responded
Respondents
117
Of 300 sampled
Confidence & trust in staff (antenatal care)
7.8/10
Worse than most trusts
Kindness & compassion (labour & birth)
8.8/10
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)
7.5/10
About the same as most trusts
Confidence & trust in your midwife (postnatal care at home)
7.3/10
Worse than most trusts
Midwife listened to you (postnatal care at home)
8.0/10
Worse than 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.

Watford General Hospital
C61.2/100
East of England (South)
Domain grades (patient-centred)
Hyperacute assessmentA
Specialist pathwayB
ReperfusionE
MDT assessmentC
Therapy intensityD
Therapy frequencyD
Standards by dischargeB
Case ascertainment AAudit compliance A

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

Hip fracture care (NHFD audit)

West Hertfordshire Teaching Hospitals NHS 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.

Watford General HospitalBest-practice 78.0%456 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 459 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
39.5%
Share of those sampled who responded
Respondents
459
Of 1,250 sampled
Quality of information while waiting to be admitted
7.8/10
National average: 7.6/10
About the same as the national average
Cleanliness of your room or ward
8.5/10
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
7.6/10
National average: 7.6/10
About the same as the national average
Involved in decisions about your care and treatment
6.8/10
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
6.7/10
National average: 6.9/10
About the same as the national average
Knew what would happen next with your care, before leaving hospital
6.7/10
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 271 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
30.0%
Share of those sampled who responded
Respondents
271
Of 950 sampled
Overall experience of A&E
7.0/10
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
2.6/10
National average: 3.4/10
About the same as the national average
Doctors and nurses listened to you
7.9/10
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
6.9/10
National average: 7.4/10
About the same as the national average
Test results explained before you left
6.7/10
National average: 7.5/10
Worse than the national average
Felt safe around other patients
7.4/10
National average: 7.8/10
About the same as the national average
Told how to care for your condition at home after leaving
5.9/10
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 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 229 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
229
Who took part
Overall rating of care
8.7/10
National average: 8.9/10
About the same as the national average
Cancer diagnosis explained understandably
79%
National average: 78%
About the same as the national average
Easy to contact your main contact person
80%
National average: 84%
About the same as the national average
Involved as much as wanted in treatment decisions
74%
National average: 80%
Worse than 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
87%
National average: 88%
About the same as the national average
Possible side effects explained understandably
66%
National average: 74%
Worse than the national average
Given enough information about signs of cancer returning or spreading
54%
National average: 65%
Worse than the national average
The whole care team worked well together
89%
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)
22.9
Oxford Score, case-mix-adjusted, 0-48 scale
Raw gain (unadjusted): 22.7
Patients
96
Modelled records — completed the questionnaire before & after
% who improved
96.9%
Oxford Score higher after surgery than before
EQ-5D Index gain (adjusted)
0.47
General health, secondary measure, 0-1 scale
Knee replacement
Average health gain (adjusted)
16.0
Oxford Score, case-mix-adjusted, 0-48 scale
Raw gain (unadjusted): 16.4
Patients
153
Modelled records — completed the questionnaire before & after
% who improved
92.8%
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
27.0%
of 19,132 patients on the diagnostic waiting list
TestWaiting list6+ weeks6+ weeks (count)13+ weeks
Audiology1,45261.6%895298
Neurophysiology25846.9%12161
Cystoscopy35044.6%15657
Ultrasound8,46339.8%3,370653
Gastroscopy83813.5%1130
DEXA Scan2,24112.4%2780
Cardiology1,1828.0%958
Colonoscopy1,1156.3%700
Flexi Sigmoidoscopy2424.1%100
MRI1,5983.9%620
CT scan1,3100.0%00
Waiting 6+ weeks for a diagnostic test
All tests combined
10%20%30%Apr 25Jan 2627.0%10.8%April 202511.8%May 202514.4%June 202516.7%July 202523.5%August 202524.6%September 202527.4%October 202523.9%November 202527.2%December 202525.4%January 202621.9%February 202626.4%March 202631.6%April 202628.4%May 202624.8%June 202624.7%July 202627.0%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 bacteraemia51
C. difficile9928
E. coli bacteraemia33853
MSSA bacteraemia8019
Klebsiella bacteraemia9422
Pseudomonas bacteraemia258
Hospital-onset cases per month
All infections combined
5101520Dec 23Jan 25Jan 26813December 202311January 202410February 202412March 20249April 202413May 202415June 202417July 202414August 202414September 202411October 202410November 202413December 202413January 202514February 202517March 20259April 202519May 202513June 202514July 20258August 20259September 202513October 202511November 202512December 20255January 202613February 20266March 202615April 202615May 202614June 202610July 20268August 2026

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

Mortality (SHMI)

12 months to May 2026.

As expected
0.97
SHMI value (1.00 = as many deaths as expected) · 1,935 deaths vs 1,995 expected
SHMI over time
Rolling 12-month value
0.951.001.05Dec 18Jan 20Jan 21Jan 22Jan 23Jan 24Jan 25Jan 26As expected (1.00)0.970.96December 20180.98January 20190.98February 20190.99March 20190.99April 20190.99May 20190.99June 20191.01July 20191.00August 20190.99September 20191.00October 20191.00November 20191.00December 20190.99January 20200.99February 20201.01March 20201.01April 20201.01May 20200.99June 20200.98July 20200.99August 20201.00September 20200.99October 20200.99November 20201.00December 20201.00January 20210.98February 20210.94March 20210.97April 20210.96May 20210.98June 20210.99July 20210.98August 20210.96September 20210.96October 20210.97November 20210.96December 20210.96January 20220.95February 20220.96March 20220.95April 20220.94May 20220.95June 20220.95July 20220.95August 20220.95September 20220.95October 20220.94November 20220.94December 20220.96January 20230.98February 20231.00March 20231.00April 20231.00May 20231.00June 20231.00July 20231.01August 20231.02September 20231.03October 20231.06November 20231.06December 20231.06January 20241.06February 20241.04March 20241.04April 20241.05May 20241.04June 20241.03July 20241.03August 20241.01September 20241.01October 20240.99November 20240.98December 20240.98January 20250.97February 20250.95March 20250.96April 20250.95May 20250.94June 20250.94July 20250.95August 20250.96September 20250.97October 20250.97November 20250.98December 20250.97January 20260.97February 20260.98March 20260.97April 20260.97May 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
Trauma and Orthopaedic5,04753.2%16.9 wks43.5 wks10800
Cardiology4,56477.7%10.8 wks26.5 wks000
Dermatology3,60182.1%9.4 wks23.0 wks000
Gastroenterology3,42891.7%8.6 wks18.3 wks000
General Surgery3,38054.3%16.4 wks44.4 wks6400
Ophthalmology3,22761.5%14.4 wks41.8 wks3300
Ear Nose and Throat3,09547.0%19.6 wks47.5 wks10900
Oral Surgery2,84052.2%17.3 wks45.0 wks7100
Urology2,76973.5%11.1 wks30.6 wks000
Other - Paediatrics2,72969.6%11.2 wks37.7 wks400
Other - Surgicals2,17579.0%9.9 wks26.8 wks200
Gynaecology2,12769.7%11.0 wks36.8 wks000
Other - Medicals1,82582.0%9.2 wks23.9 wks200
Neurology1,25079.9%11.6 wks23.7 wks000
Respiratory Medicine1,14887.7%8.2 wks22.5 wks000
Rheumatology93774.8%10.3 wks27.5 wks000
Other - Others14497.9%6.0 wks16.9 wks000
General Internal Medicine6098.3%5.2 wks9.6 wks000
Elderly Medicine5494.4%6.0 wks17.7 wks000
Other - Mental Healths4100.0%1.7 wks2.7 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.