Corridor care has become so entrenched across NHS hospitals that nursing staff fear they are “losing all hope”, according to new testimony from members of the Royal College of Nursing.
Members reported collapsing care standards, worsening patient safety and a growing sense of shame, frustration and moral distress as they are forced to care for patients in wholly unsuitable spaces.
The RCN is renewing its call for urgent, fully funded action plans to end corridor care, including investment in additional beds, a strengthened nursing workforce, improved community services and greater capacity in social care. The organisation says governments across the UK have failed to act with the urgency required, leaving staff feeling “angry”, “embarrassed” and deeply troubled about the undignified care patients are receiving.
The situation has escalated further in recent weeks, with hospitals declaring critical incidents and the RCN urging members to raise any concerns about patient or staff safety. Testimony paints a disturbing picture: one patient was left sitting in a chair for four days; another died after choking unnoticed in a corridor. Nursing staff describe having to hold up sheets to protect the dignity of patients during intimate procedures, while one corridor was reportedly so crowded that an elderly patient ate their meal beside someone who was vomiting.
Nurses across the UK share similar concerns. A nurse in southern England said, “We would not treat animals like this in a veterinary practice, so why in a hospital?” A Scottish nurse described the situation as “stressful and distressing” with a growing sense of hopelessness. In Wales, a mental health nurse said corridor care was now a “regular occurrence”, creating additional risks due to unsecured objects and fittings. A nurse in Northern Ireland told the RCN: “I’ve had resuscitation attempts in the waiting room and corridor due to no capacity. It is inhuman and undignified.”
It has been more than 18 months since the RCN declared a national emergency on corridor care and a year since it published a report detailing the scale of the crisis. Yet new evidence suggests the practice is becoming entrenched and spreading beyond emergency departments to acute assessment units, respiratory wards, surgical wards and elderly care wards.
Despite pressure from the RCN, the government has not yet published data on corridor care in England, despite committing to do so in February 2025. Meanwhile, the Health Services Safety Investigation Body reported in January 2026 that corridor care had become widespread and normalised, with some hospitals even installing call bells and plug sockets in corridors to accommodate patients.
Public concern continues to rise, with new YouGov polling shows that 18% of UK adults have witnessed NHS care being delivered in non-clinical spaces, such as corridors, in the past six months. Among those who accessed care, this rises to 37%. Furthermore, nearly seven in ten (69%) people in England believe the Health Secretary Wes Streeting’s commitment to end corridor care by the end of the Parliament is “too slow”.
Chief Executive and General Secretary of the RCN, Professor Nicola Ranger, said:
“The fact remains that there can be no safe, dignified care delivered in a corridor, storeroom or dining room, but that has become the norm.
“It’s taking a terrible toll on staff, but ministers mustn’t allow them to lose hope. Decisive action can restore care standards and stop staff morale collapsing past the point of no return.
“Now is the time for ministers to stop dragging their feet and publish the data, alongside announcing a fully funded action plan and timeline for eradication.”
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