NHS corridor care now year-round crisis in England, experts say

Corridor care in the NHS is now a year-round crisis, experts have warned, as analysis showed nearly 3 million patients attended A&E over the first two months of the summer.

The latest NHS figures in England, analysed by the Liberal Democrats, show that since 2015 the number of people going to A&E in June and July has increased 15% to 2.9 million – the highest level recorded over the past decade.

Whereas 12-hour trolley waits were almost nonexistent a decade ago, with just 47 recorded throughout June and July in 2015, in June 2025 38,683 patients, 7.2% of all those attending A&E, had to wait 12 hours or more to be admitted. In all, 74,150 patients – 1,216 a day – waited at least 12 hours during June and July this year.

Some hospitals reported even higher proportions of patients facing long waits. More than a quarter of patients at five NHS trusts had to wait at least 12 hours to be admitted during June and July.

Helen Morgan, the Lib Dem health and social care spokesperson, said the figures showed the NHS was entering a state of “permacrisis”.

“What was once a winter crisis has become a year-round disaster, with the health service buckling under pressure all year round,” she said.

“Every day people are put at risk by long, deadly waits with families watching helplessly as loved ones are left in agony on trolleys in A&E corridors.”

Patricia Marquis, the executive director for England at the Royal College of Nursing, said: “An explosion in 12-hour waits is the clearest indicator that corridor care is now a year-round crisis. There has been no respite for understaffed nursing teams during a record summer and they will now be worried about what the coming winter has in store.

“Ministers need to act with urgency before the cold weather arrives and stop patients being placed in corridors, cupboards, waiting rooms and any space hospitals can spare. It is utterly undignified and will never be a safe standard of care.”

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Source: The Guardian, 1 September 2025

Further reading on the hub:

• Corridor care and patient safety series
• A silent safety scandal: A nurse’s first-hand account of a corridor nursing shift
• My experience of the 'Wait 45' policy