A&E performance recovery lauded by NHSE ‘may not be real’

The “substantial improvements” in a trust’s A&E performance praised by NHS England directors “may not be real” according to a paper prepared by its local health and care partnership.

In a report submitted to the NHSE board meeting last month,  national director of UEC and operations Sarah-Jane Marsh and financial reset and accountability director Glen Burley claimed: “Local clinical and operational teams across the NHS have demonstrated how significant improvements and leaps in performance can be achieved.”

They added: “The Princess Alexandra Hospital Trust have delivered substantial improvements in urgent and emergency care services for patients, and achieved a 23% improvement in 4-hour performance in December 2025, compared to the same month the previous year.”

The latest version of the NHSE provider league table ranks PAHT 13th out of 123 relevant providers for its quarter three performance on the A&E standard. It was placed 55th in Q2 and 94th in Q1. 

However, a performance analysis by the East and North Hertfordshire Health and Care Partnership submitted to the March board meeting of the neighbouring East and North Hertfordshire Teaching Trust questions the basis of the improvement in PAHT’s record.

It states: “There was a significant improvement in the ranking of PAH between July and September. This was primarily due to a recording change in relation to [same day emergency care] patients…However, there are some inconsistencies between the PAH ECDS data and its A&E sitrep data, which means that this improvement in A&E performance may not be real.

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Source: HSJ, 23 March 2026