New NHS data has revealed that waiting lists across Cambridgeshire are improving and the national waiting list target has been metDavid Dubas-Fisher and Hunni Haynes Trainee multimedia reporter05:12, 01 Jun 2026NHS waiting lists are improving across Cambridgeshire, new data has revealed(Image: Getty)NHS waiting lists are improving at a Cambridge hospital, with patients getting the treatment they need quicker than they were two years ago. New NHS figures have revealed the NHS has met its national waiting list target of having at least 65 percent of patients on the waiting list for no longer than 18 weeks by March 2026.It has met that target with new data revealing that the actual proportion was 65.3 percent. Back in November 2024 – the baseline month set for comparisons – only 59.1 percent of patients on the waiting list had been waiting for less than 18 weeks. In July 2024, when Labour came to power, only 58.8 percent of the waiting list had been waiting for less than 18 weeks.Cambridge University Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust (CUH) has also seen big improvements. Some 62.9 percent of those on waiting lists at the trust have been on them for 18 weeks or less, just behind the national average. However, that’s up from 59.1 percent in November 2024 and 58.9 percent in July 2024. The number of people waiting over a year for treatment has also seen a sharp decline.A total of 3,026 had been on the waiting list for over a year in June 2024. That has since fallen to just 941 as of March of this year. Meanwhile, the overall waiting list at Cambridge University Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust has fallen from 64,117 to 58,435 over the same time period.Using our gadget, you can see how things have improved at your local trust. Simply enter your postcode in the search box below and select a trust from the dropdown:Elsewhere in Cambridgeshire, the Cambridgeshire and Peterborough NHS Foundation Trust had 37.2 percent of patients on waiting lists for less than 18 weeks as of May 2026. This marks a small improvement from November 2024 when 34.1 percent of patients were on waiting lists for less than 18 weeks.The North West Anglia NHS Foundation Trust has 61.3 percent of patients on the waiting list for less than 18 weeks, marking a significant improvement from November 2024 when the figure was 52.3 percent. The Royal Papworth NHS Foundation Trust has the best figures of all NHS trusts in Cambridgeshire, with 78.8 percent of patients being on the waiting list for less than 18 weeks. The figure in November 2024 was 64.5 percent.Nick Kirby, interim Chief Operating Officer at CUH, said: “Teams across our hospitals are working hard to ensure more patients are seen sooner and we are pleased to see this reflected in these latest figures. Reducing long waits is key to delivering excellent care for our patients.”The overall size of the national NHS waiting list fell by over 110,000 in the last month to a total of 7.1 million. That’s also down from 7.4 million in March 2025 and 7.5 million in March 2024.NHS Chief Executive Officer, Sir Jim Mackey said: “This is a huge moment for the NHS. Hitting our targets for the first time in years hasn’t happened by accident – it’s been down to an absolutely enormous effort from NHS staff up and down the country.“Today’s achievement goes beyond a set of remarkable statistics – it shows that we’re making real inroads on the things that matter to our patients and communities.”
NHS waiting lists improving at Cambridge hospital as national target is hit
