The waiting list for routine hospital treatment in England has fallen to 7.57m

Prof Sir Stephen Powis, national medical director for NHS England, has put out a statement welcoming the waiting list reduction (see 9.53am), but saying the health service will be busier than ever before this winter. He says:

The NHS is going into winter under more pressure and busier than ever before, with another record month for A&E and ambulance services before we even start to see a further spike of pressure caused by colder weather and the spread of winter viruses.

While we saw 10% more A&E patients within four hours than last year despite the record demand, it is vital that people help us out by only going to A&E or calling 999 in a life-threatening emergency, using 111 for other conditions, and getting their Covid, flu and RSV vaccinations if eligible.

An estimated 7.57 million treatments were waiting to be carried out at the end of September, relating to 6.34 million patients – down from 7.64 million treatments and 6.42 million patients at the end of August, NHS England said.

These are the lowest figures since April 2024.