Local NHS waiting lists fall, new figures show

The number of people waiting over a year for NHS treatment in Bedfordshire, Luton and Milton Keynes has fallen by more than half, new figures show.

The data, published by NHS England, reveal that the number of people waiting more than 52 weeks between referral and treatment was 55.4% lower at the end of April 2025 than a year earlier.

In April 2024, there were 9,550 people in the area who had been waiting for longer than a year; by April 2025, this number had fallen to 4,263.

Felicity Cox, chief executive officer at Bedfordshire, Luton and Milton Keynes Integrated Care Board, said:

“The reduction in waiting lists is good news for local patients.  I’m pleased to see these figures, which show that our local trusts are making progress on waiting lists faster than the national average, but we still have a lot more to do.

“The national standard is that nobody should wait longer than 18 weeks from referral to beginning their treatment.  We have seen a substantial reduction over the past year in the number of people waiting the longest times for treatment, and NHS staff are working incredibly hard to maintain that progress.”

Across England, the number of patients waiting over a year for treatment fell from 302,589 to 190,068, a decrease of 37.2%.