HospitalCheck

West Suffolk NHS Foundation Trust

Bury St. Edmunds, IP33 2QZ · 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
69.3% within 4 hours · standard 95% · About this data
Cancer
Below NHS standard
76.3% treated within 62 days · standard 85% · About this data
Diagnostics
Below NHS standard
15.5% 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 Suffolk NHS Foundation Trust reported 9,581 A&E attendances in July 2026, with 69.3% of patients treated within four hours. In June 2026, the trust had 33,329 patients on its waiting list, and 65.6% were seen within 18 weeks of referral. Additionally, 59.4% of staff would recommend the trust for treatment in the 2025 NHS Staff Survey.

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
65.6%
National median: 66.3%
▲ 8.6 pts vs yr agoBetter than 47% of trustsData: Jun 2026
Typical (median) wait
12.0 wks
National median: 11.7 wks
▼ 3.1 wks vs yr agoBetter than 43% of trustsData: Jun 2026
Patients on the waiting list
33,329
National median: 39,587
▼ 1,800 vs yr agoData: Jun 2026
Waiting over a year
564
National median: 358.5
▼ 1,009 vs yr agoBetter than 38% of trustsData: Jun 2026
A&E patients seen within 4 hours
69.3%
National median: 74.2%
▼ 4.8 pts vs yr agoBetter than 28% of trustsData: Jul 2026
A&E attendances
9,581
National median: 14,642
▲ 517 vs yr agoData: Jul 2026
12-hour trolley waits
397
National median: 194
▲ 252 vs yr agoBetter than 33% of trustsData: Jul 2026

A&E performance

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

A&E attendances
9,581
All department types · latest month
Seen within 4 hours
69.3%
All department types · NHS standard: 95%
Waited over 12 hours
397
From decision-to-admit ('trolley waits')
Emergency admissions
2,199
All department types · latest month
Major A&E only (Type 1)
Attendances
8,601
Seen within 4 hours
65.8%

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)9,58169.3%
Type 1 — major A&E8,60165.8%
Type 3 — minor injury / UTC980100.0%

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

Cancer waiting times

Latest month: June 2026.

Faster diagnosis (28 days)
80.6%
1,135 of 1,408 treated in time
Target 75% · meets target
Treatment within 62 days
76.3%
126 of 165 treated in time
Target 85% · below target
Treatment within 31 days
100.0%
247 of 247 treated in time
Target 96% · meets target
Treated within 62 days
Urgent referral to first treatment
70%80%Apr 25Jan 26NHS standard 85%76.3%84.8%April 202569.6%May 202574.9%June 202571.4%July 202578.9%August 202584.9%September 202581.7%October 202586.4%November 202583.3%December 202575.4%January 202682.6%February 202681.6%March 202678.5%April 202676.3%May 202676.3%June 2026
Faster diagnosis (28 days)
Referral to diagnosis or ruling-out
70%80%Apr 25Jan 26NHS standard 75%80.6%70.0%April 202565.8%May 202574.7%June 202581.3%July 202580.4%August 202574.7%September 202574.6%October 202573.3%November 202576.0%December 202576.2%January 202682.3%February 202685.1%March 202682.6%April 202683.9%May 202680.6%June 2026
Treated within 31 days
Decision to treat to first treatment
96%98%100%Apr 25Jan 26NHS standard 96%100.0%100.0%April 202599.6%May 2025100.0%June 202599.2%July 2025100.0%August 2025100.0%September 2025100.0%October 2025100.0%November 2025100.0%December 2025100.0%January 202699.6%February 202699.6%March 2026100.0%April 2026100.0%May 2026100.0%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
98.5%
Rated care 'good' or 'very good'
% would not recommend
0.3%
Rated care 'poor' or 'very poor'
Responses
399
Number of patients who gave feedback
Response rate
28.0%
Responses as a share of those eligible
Urgent & emergency care (A&E)
% would recommend
81.2%
Rated care 'good' or 'very good'
% would not recommend
13.1%
Rated care 'poor' or 'very poor'
Responses
557
Number of patients who gave feedback
Response rate
7.9%
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
59.4%
Agreed · 2025 NHS Staff Survey▼ 0.7 pts vs 2024Median English trust: 63.9%
Staff engagement
6.43
out of 10 · 2025
Would recommend as a place to work
48.1%
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
82
elective ops cancelled on the day, non-clinical reasons
Not rebooked within 28 days
34
the NHS standard is a new date within 28 days
% not rebooked in time
41.5%
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
93.0%
423 occupied of 455 open
Adult critical care occupancy
100.0%
16 occupied of 16 open
Ambulance handovers over 30 minutes
23.1%
of 7,919 handovers, winter 2025-26
Ambulance handovers over 60 minutes
10.7%
of 7,919 handovers, winter 2025-26
Medically fit but not discharged
59
patients/day who no longer met the criteria to reside but stayed in hospital, week to 29 March 2026
Discharged when fit
52%
of 863 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 133 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
45.2%
Share of those sampled who responded
Respondents
133
Of 300 sampled
Confidence & trust in staff (antenatal care)
8.5/10
About the same as most trusts
Kindness & compassion (labour & birth)
9.2/10
About the same as most trusts
Involved in decisions about care (labour & birth)
8.6/10
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)
8.8/10
About the same as most trusts
Midwife listened to you (postnatal care at home)
9.3/10
Better 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.

West Suffolk Hospital
D57.5/100
East of England (North)
Domain grades (patient-centred)
Hyperacute assessmentB
Specialist pathwayC
ReperfusionE
MDT assessmentB
Therapy intensityC
Therapy frequencyD
Standards by dischargeC
Case ascertainment AAudit compliance A

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

Hip fracture care (NHFD audit)

West Suffolk 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.

West Suffolk HospitalBest-practice 92.9%448 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 561 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
47.1%
Share of those sampled who responded
Respondents
561
Of 1,250 sampled
Quality of information while waiting to be admitted
7.7/10
National average: 7.6/10
About the same as the national average
Cleanliness of your room or ward
9.0/10
National average: 8.9/10
About the same as the national average
Confidence and trust in the doctors
9.3/10
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
7.3/10
National average: 7.6/10
About the same as the national average
Involved in decisions about your care and treatment
7.1/10
National average: 7.2/10
About the same as the national average
Given enough privacy when examined or treated
9.7/10
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
6.6/10
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 443 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
37.1%
Share of those sampled who responded
Respondents
443
Of 1,250 sampled
Overall experience of A&E
8.1/10
National average: 7.3/10
Better than the national average
Told how long you'd wait to be examined
3.3/10
National average: 2.6/10
About the same as the national average
Kept updated on your waiting time
4.4/10
National average: 3.4/10
About the same as the national average
Doctors and nurses listened to you
8.6/10
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
8.3/10
National average: 7.4/10
Better than the national average
Test results explained before you left
8.0/10
National average: 7.5/10
About the same as the national average
Felt safe around other patients
8.5/10
National average: 7.8/10
About the same as the national average
Told how to care for your condition at home after leaving
7.6/10
National average: 6.8/10
About the same as the national average
Treated with respect and dignity
8.9/10
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 225 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
225
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
78%
National average: 78%
About the same as the national average
Easy to contact your main contact person
89%
National average: 84%
About the same as the national average
Involved as much as wanted in treatment decisions
79%
National average: 80%
About the same as the national average
Confidence and trust in the team during hospital care
85%
National average: 78%
About the same as the national average
Always treated with respect and dignity in hospital
91%
National average: 88%
About the same as the national average
Possible side effects explained understandably
73%
National average: 74%
About the same as the national average
Given enough information about signs of cancer returning or spreading
59%
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
42%
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)
21.1
Oxford Score, case-mix-adjusted, 0-48 scale
Raw gain (unadjusted): 22.2
Patients
208
Modelled records — completed the questionnaire before & after
% who improved
96.6%
Oxford Score higher after surgery than before
EQ-5D Index gain (adjusted)
0.42
General health, secondary measure, 0-1 scale
Knee replacement
Average health gain (adjusted)
15.6
Oxford Score, case-mix-adjusted, 0-48 scale
Raw gain (unadjusted): 17.5
Patients
293
Modelled records — completed the questionnaire before & after
% who improved
94.9%
Oxford Score higher after surgery than before
EQ-5D Index gain (adjusted)
0.31
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
15.5%
of 6,730 patients on the diagnostic waiting list
TestWaiting list6+ weeks6+ weeks (count)13+ weeks
Colonoscopy42552.5%223104
Flexi Sigmoidoscopy22952.0%11945
Gastroscopy61351.5%316156
Audiology73024.4%178105
Cystoscopy7915.2%122
Ultrasound2,2936.6%1513
MRI8753.7%327
Cardiology7210.8%61
CT scan6000.7%40
DEXA Scan1570.6%10
Waiting 6+ weeks for a diagnostic test
All tests combined
20%40%60%Apr 25Jan 2615.5%52.1%April 202556.2%May 202555.4%June 202555.5%July 202557.7%August 202554.4%September 202548.1%October 202543.3%November 202540.7%December 202527.3%January 202616.0%February 202613.7%March 202615.8%April 202617.4%May 202615.5%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 bacteraemia41
C. difficile13155
E. coli bacteraemia23130
MSSA bacteraemia6311
Klebsiella bacteraemia7113
Pseudomonas bacteraemia185
Hospital-onset cases per month
All infections combined
5101520Dec 23Jan 25Jan 26139December 202312January 202412February 202410March 202411April 202410May 202410June 20248July 202411August 202410September 202411October 202410November 202412December 20247January 202510February 202511March 202510April 20253May 202511June 202516July 20257August 20259September 202519October 20257November 20257December 20259January 202611February 202610March 202611April 20266May 20266June 202613July 2026

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

Mortality (SHMI)

12 months to Mar 2026.

As expected
1.00
SHMI value (1.00 = as many deaths as expected) · 1,560 deaths vs 1,555 expected
SHMI over time
Rolling 12-month value
0.901.00Dec 18Jan 20Jan 21Jan 22Jan 23Jan 24Jan 25Jan 26As expected (1.00)1.000.91December 20180.90January 20190.90February 20190.91March 20190.92April 20190.92May 20190.92June 20190.94July 20190.92August 20190.91September 20190.92October 20190.91November 20190.92December 20190.93January 20200.93February 20200.94March 20200.94April 20200.93May 20200.92June 20200.92July 20200.92August 20200.92September 20200.92October 20200.92November 20200.91December 20200.91January 20210.93February 20210.93March 20210.93April 20210.93May 20210.93June 20210.92July 20210.91August 20210.91September 20210.90October 20210.90November 20210.89December 20210.89January 20220.87February 20220.87March 20220.87April 20220.88May 20220.88June 20220.89July 20220.88August 20220.89September 20220.89October 20220.93November 20220.98December 20220.97January 20230.99February 20231.01March 20231.01April 20231.01May 20231.02June 20231.02July 20231.01August 20231.01September 20231.01October 20230.96November 20230.90December 20230.90January 20240.90February 20240.88March 20240.87April 20240.86May 20240.87June 20240.85July 20240.85August 20240.85September 20240.84October 20240.86November 20240.86December 20240.87January 20250.88February 20250.93March 20250.95April 20250.97May 20250.97June 20251.01July 20251.02August 20251.03September 20251.04October 20251.03November 20251.03December 20250.99January 20261.00February 20261.00March 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 Orthopaedic4,43852.3%17.0 wks41.0 wks85132
Other - Surgicals3,63068.0%11.0 wks42.7 wks97127
Gynaecology3,14353.0%16.5 wks47.9 wks166131
Ear Nose and Throat3,00870.0%11.1 wks36.7 wks2031
Dermatology2,62287.7%7.0 wks21.2 wks510
Ophthalmology2,36972.6%11.1 wks32.4 wks300
General Surgery2,21254.2%15.9 wks44.0 wks5910
Other - Medicals2,13262.2%13.4 wks36.5 wks1500
Urology2,12164.2%13.1 wks32.6 wks500
Other - Paediatrics1,65462.5%13.3 wks41.2 wks6220
Cardiology1,20679.6%8.8 wks27.3 wks500
Gastroenterology87968.7%10.6 wks34.6 wks900
Neurology87464.8%13.2 wks33.5 wks410
Plastic Surgery81354.1%16.1 wks42.5 wks2231
Rheumatology79990.6%8.2 wks18.9 wks000
General Internal Medicine64075.2%9.8 wks28.2 wks200
Respiratory Medicine63873.8%11.0 wks24.5 wks000
Other - Others13360.9%13.4 wks45.4 wks500
Elderly Medicine15100.0%6.8 wks14.8 wks000
Other - Mental Healths3100.0%4.5 wks6.8 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.