The waiting list for hospital treatment in England continues to rise, despite the NHS delivering record levels of care, figures suggest.
An estimated 7.37 million treatments were waiting to be carried out at the end of August, relating to 6.24 million patients, according to new NHS figures.
This is up from 7.33 million treatments and 6.21 million patients at the end of July.
The numbers are the highest since October 2025, when the list stood at 7.40 million treatments and 6.24 million patients.
Long waits for NHS hospital treatment in England have also increased, according to the data.
An estimated 113,339 people had been waiting more than a year to start routine treatment at the end of August, up from 111,379 people at the end of July.
The Government has pledged that 92% of patients in England will begin treatment within 18 weeks by the end of the current Parliament in 2029.
Currently, around 65% are treated within this timeframe.
NHS England said a record 4.7 million (4,738,824) planned treatments, procedures and appointments occurred across June, July and August – more than in any previous summer.
NHS national medical director, Professor Frankie Swords, praised staff for their efforts, adding there were now “ominous” signs of winter pressure building on the health service.
She said: “NHS staff have done fantastic work to deliver record levels of elective care this summer and now supporting the busiest September on record for A&E attendances and ambulance incidents.
“But now the focus is on the looming winter months ahead.
“Staff are already seeing the ominous early signs of pressure, with more patients coming to A&E with flu and other respiratory viruses than usual for this time of year, and unfortunately many people are still waiting longer than we would like them to.
“This is why it’s absolutely crucial to take up the offer of flu, RSV, Covid and other vaccinations if you’re eligible, to protect yourself, your family and the public.
“We all have our part to play, so please don’t wait for winter – come forward to your GP or pharmacy now and get protected.”
Health Secretary, Yvette Cooper said: “Our NHS is dealing with summer pressures now as well as winter pressures.
“So it is a huge tribute to doctors, nurses and staff across the NHS that alongside dealing with unprecedented levels of A&E attendances and ambulance callouts, they also managed to deliver record numbers of elective appointments, procedures and treatments.
“Step by step, our NHS has been increasing its delivery and performance, making a real difference to patients’ lives even as demand is growing.
“But with winter now approaching, pressure on our NHS is set to increase again and I would encourage everyone who is eligible for the flu jab and other vaccines to get themselves protected against preventable illnesses, and help relieve the workload on the NHS too.”
The new data found that 74.4% of patients in England were seen within four hours in A&Es last month, down from 75.0% in August.
The number of people waiting more than 12 hours in A&E departments in England from a decision to admit to actually being admitted – so-called “corridor care” – stood at 50,582 in September, up from 44,951 in August.
The number waiting at least four hours from the decision to admit to admission also rose, standing at 129,199 in September, up from 118,550 in August.
NHS England said September was the busiest ever for patients attending A&E ( with 2.44m attendances), while ambulance callouts were also high.
Sarah Woolnough, chief executive of the King’s Fund, said “today’s figures show why the Government will soon have to make its expectations for the NHS clear”.
She added: “NHS waiting lists have continued to rise, with more than 120,000 added since the start of this year through to August.
“The King’s Fund has warned before that the previous administration’s approach of using ‘sprint funding’ to cut waiting lists at speed towards the end of the year was more akin to a sugar rush than the type of sustained recovery patients need.
“We can’t expect NHS staff to keep working harder to bring down waiting lists based on these injections of short-term funding.
“More fundamental action is needed to address the underlying causes of rising demand and create a more sustainable health service for patients.
“A change in administration is an opportunity for the Government to make good on its commitment to focus on preventing ill-health, rather than simply treating people when they fall sick.
“This approach could help improve health outcomes for the public, boost economic productivity and reduce the burden on taxpayers.
“Tackling issues like obesity, young people’s mental health and long waiting lists for children would be a good start for reducing the chance of people joining waiting lists for care in the first place.”
Tim Gardner, deputy director of policy at the Health Foundation, said: “Today’s data shows NHS performance faltering just as the service heads towards the busiest period of the year and highlights again the difficult legacy facing the new Government on healthcare.
“Despite the NHS delivering a high level of elective activity, NHS waiting lists still increased…
“The extreme heat over the summer hampered efforts to improve performance and our latest projections suggest it will be increasingly hard for the NHS to meet its headline 18-week standard for routine hospital care.
“The NHS now has only a very short window to get elective recovery back on track before colder winter weather and seasonal illnesses start to intensify pressures on urgent and emergency care again.
“With a Budget and a new 10-year plan for government coming in the autumn, ministers need to confront difficult choices.
“A decision is needed on whether to continue chasing the headline pledge on waiting lists or to set a more realistic goal and broaden the focus to other key aspects of care that matter to patients and the public, including waiting times in A&E, access to general practice and improving maternity care.”
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