A pioneering new system of NHS league tables is being launched across England today, marking a major step forward in transparency, accountability, and patient care improvement.
Every NHS trust will now be ranked quarterly against clear performance standards across urgent and emergency care, elective operations, and mental health services. The move delivers on a key commitment in the government’s 10 Year Health Plan to raise standards and tackle variation in care.
Top-performing trusts will be rewarded with greater autonomy, including the ability to reinvest surplus budgets into frontline improvements such as diagnostic equipment and hospital upgrades. From next year, a new wave of Foundation Trusts will be introduced, giving high-performing organisations more freedom to tailor services to local needs.
Trusts facing the greatest challenges will receive enhanced support, with senior leaders held accountable through performance-linked pay. The best NHS leaders will be offered higher salaries to take on the toughest roles, helping to turn around struggling services.
The league tables will be divided into four performance segments, with separate rankings for acute, non-acute, and ambulance trusts to ensure fair comparisons. Patient feedback will play a central role in the rankings, giving the public a stronger voice in shaping their care.
By summer 2026, the tables will expand to cover Integrated Care Boards (ICBs) and wider NHS performance areas, helping to end the postcode lottery in care and ensure consistent, high-quality treatment across the country.
Health Secretary Wes Streeting said:
“We must be honest about the state of the NHS to fix it. Patients and taxpayers have to know how their local NHS services are doing compared to the rest of the country.
“These league tables will identify where urgent support is needed and allow high-performing areas to share best practises with others, taking the best of the NHS to the rest of the NHS.
“Patients know when local services aren’t up to scratch and they want to see an end to the postcode lottery - that’s what this government is doing. We’re combining the extra £26 billion investment each year with tough reforms to get value for money, with every pound helping to cut waiting times for patients.”
This reform builds on progress already made through the government’s Plan for Change, including:
- Cutting waiting lists by over 250,000 since July 2024
- Delivering nearly 5 million extra appointments
- Recruiting 2,000 additional GPs to improve access
The new system aims to ensure that record NHS funding is matched by measurable improvements in care, outcomes, and efficiency.
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