Short answer: As of May 2026 (the latest data, published 9 July 2026): 7.3 million pathways were waiting for consultant-led care, with a median wait of 12.4 weeks. 34.4% had waited over 18 weeks and 104,734 pathways over a year. The list is slowly improving — down 1.1% on May 2025, with the within-18-weeks share up 4.6 percentage points.
For who: patients and researchers wanting the current, sourced waiting-list numbers.
Reviewed by: Ben Darke, PMI Experts · Last updated: 2026-07-17
Reviewed by: Ben Darke, PMI Experts · Last updated: 2026-07-17
Key facts
| Total waiting | 7.3 million pathways ≈ 6.2 million unique patients (NHS England, May 2026) |
| Median wait | 12.4 weeks; 92nd percentile 38.6 weeks |
| Over 18 weeks | 34.4% (≈2.51m pathways); the constitutional standard is 92% within 18 weeks |
| Longest waits | 104,734 pathways >52 weeks; 6,740 >65 weeks; 177 >104 weeks |
| Monthly activity | 1.73m new pathways started in May 2026; 1.43m completed |
| Trend | Down 77,566 pathways (−1.1%) vs May 2025; performance improving |
Sources
NHS England RTT statistical press notice, May 2026 data, published 9 July 2026 (england.nhs.uk RTT statistics).