NHS England agrees new A&E target

Trusts will be told to hit the four-hour A&E target in 78% of cases by next year after NHS England finally made an agreement with government, HSJ understands.

The new target is just two percentage points higher than the target set for the current year of 76% – and must be hit in March 2025, according to NHS planning guidance.

NHS England will also aim to maintain “core” general and acute beds at 99,000 on average across 2024-25 after funding was agreed with the government. This would maintain the beds at levels seen over recent months, but it would be a significant increase in the permanent “sustainable” beds available in the health service compared with previous years.

Most trusts have fallen well short of the 76% target through much of 2023-24, and NHSE has pressed for them to make last-ditch attempts in recent weeks to try and get closer to the target ahead of the March 2024 deadline. This has included offering new capital funding rewards for improvement and telling trusts to focus on non-admitted patients.

Elective recovery targets are expected to slip, and government has conceded making significant progress on these is almost impossible, with ongoing doctors strikes on top of other capacity problems. 

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Source: HSJ, 27 March 2024