The government’s latest position on winter preparedness is below:
Health and Social Care Secretary Wes Streeting said:
“For far too long, our NHS has been trapped in a recurring winter crisis - the same problems, the same pressures, year after year.
“Winter pressures aren’t just numbers on a chart. They’re families waiting in distress, patients stuck in pain, and NHS staff pushed to their limits. Every delay carries a human cost and without long-term planning and reform, this cycle will never end.
“That’s why this government started planning for winter earlier than ever before. We’ve brought together the best NHS leaders - including a new network of Chief Operating Officers - to make sure plans are delivered and patients are protected.
“Through our Urgent and Emergency Care Plan, we’re investing more funding, in more ambulances, new urgent treatment centres and tougher targets to drive real improvements. Our strengthened vaccination campaign is protecting those most at risk - from toddlers and pregnant women to NHS staff.
“Winter pressures show us where the NHS is hurting - but also where we can act. With the right plan, the right people, and the right leadership, change isn’t just possible - it’s happening.”
The fact sheet below outlines in further detail how the government is preparing to deal with winter pressures and support the health service differently this year, alongside plans to tackle corridor care in the NHS:
What is the government doing differently this year?
We’re doing things differently this winter to not just brace the system but change it for the long term. Proper modernisation and reform that will help us weather the storm going ahead.
We are:
- Stress testing: Across three stages – Preparation, Staying Ahead and Response, we have started preparing earlier with more coordination with local leaders and between hospitals and primary care. For the first time, we had systems submit detailed winter plans early – including on discharge and emergency – and fed those plans through three different winter scenarios to stress test them. Where there are gaps and weaknesses, we’ve worked actively to support Trusts in plugging these and strengthening plans.
- Vaccinating: Seasonal flu patterns– which often predict our own – show a longer, more intense run of flu is approaching, and so we’ve massively ramped up activity with strong results. We’ve been particularly targeting 2- and 3-year-olds and introducing more routes for them, made sure more healthcare workers and pregnant women have the jabs, and are close to reaching our target on RSV, with Covid vaccinations also up.
- Getting people using their GPs: With advertising campaigns, new online access routes to speak to your GP, and more GPs open for longer hours over the Christmas period, we are making sure that more people can be seen closer to home instead of feeling their only option is to show up at A&E.
- Through our Urgent and Emergency Care Plan, we’re investing more funding, in 500 new ambulances by March 2026, new urgent treatment centres and tougher targets to drive real improvements.
Examples of best practice include:
East Lancashire Hospital Trust
They use a digital front door system. When patients arrive, they check in using kiosks or their own devices. A quick digital assessment (like vision and alertness) decides what happens next:
- Booked straight in
- Sent to a more suitable service
- Given a time to come back later the same day
Impact:
- 48% fewer people waiting in the department
- 53% of patients spend less time in A&E
- Saved about 263 clinical hours in two months
- Up to 75% of arrivals can wait at home for a timed slot instead of sitting in A&E
Surrey Downs – Home First
This combines several services into one easy access point:
- Urgent community care within 2 hours
- Consultant-led virtual wards
- Recovery at Home rehab
- Frailty team at Epsom Hospital
- Integrated frailty beds
Impact:
- Fewer unnecessary 999 / 111 calls and hospital admissions
- Ongoing reductions in emergency admissions and long-term care for older people with frailty
Bradford Teaching Hospitals
They run an AI-powered Command Centre at Bradford Royal Infirmary. It gives a real-time view of beds, A&E, and discharges – like air traffic control for the hospital.
Impact:
- A&E performance improved from 119th to 5th out of 140 Acute Trusts
- Early discharges (by 4pm) rose from 35% to 54%
How are you supporting emergency care this winter and into the future?
A&E demand has increased compared to last year but we are making sure more patients are being treated in the right place at the right time, including through Same Day Emergency Care.
Patients will soon be able to book into the most appropriate urgent care service for them, via 111 or the NHS App before attending, by 2028.
Patients may be redirected to care elsewhere, such as their GP or pharmacy, if not considered an emergency.
Through our Urgent and Emergency Care Plan published in the summer, backed by £450 million, we will introduce new Mental Health Emergency Departments to reduce the strain on A&E and ensure patients receive specialist support. Alongside this, we are also buying and upgrading 500 ambulances to ensure that patients can receive quicker pre-hospital care where they need it.
The measures this government has taken will not only reduce unnecessary hospital attendance, but also put care in the places people need it, whether that is through the NHS App or in neighbourhood health centres.
What is being done to increase hospital capacity?
The government is investing in expanding and modernising hospitals, adding more beds, buying and upgrading 500 ambulances and choosing locations for new emergency units. Temporary care units are also being set up to help during busy times.
Patients can also get the same level of care and support they would receive in hospital, but at home, through virtual wards, with doctors and nurses keeping track of their health using regular check-ins and remote monitoring.
Alongside this, we are also shifting care out of busy hospitals through the role of Community Diagnostic Centres, meaning that patients can get quicker access to the vital tests, checks and scans they need in quicker time. Since July 2024, over 9.4 million tests have been carried out at these sites.
Vital schemes, such as Advice and Guidance is also helping to keep patients away from busy hospitals. The process sees GPs and other healthcare professionals seek quick expert advice from hospital specialists, helping patients get the right care faster and often avoiding the need for a hospital appointment. Since April 2025, over half a million patients received more appropriate care in the community, rather than automatically being referred to hospital services thanks to the scheme.
How are you supporting NHS staff?
NHS staff are the heart of our health service and programmes to support the mental and physical wellbeing of healthcare workers are being enhanced to improve retention and morale.
Alongside this there are national efforts to recruit more doctors, nurses, and healthcare assistants. This year we have seen record numbers of doctors working in the NHS in England, and more doctors working in almost every speciality area than a year ago — on top of this, we have committed to creating 1000 more speciality training places over the next 3 years in our 10 Year Health Plan.
There are over 147,000 full time equivalent (FTE) doctors employed by NHS Trusts and integrated care boards in England as of July 2025, almost 6,800 (4.8%) more than a year ago. This includes over 59,000 FTE consultants, over 2,200 (3.9%) more than a year ago.
In under 18 months we recruited over 2,500 GPs – smashing through our promise of 1,000 alongside the extra £1.1 billion investment we’ve made in general practice.
Over the long-term our 10 Year Health Plan will deliver a revolution in healthcare. It is through the NHS’s workforce that the transformed service will be delivered.
To meet this challenge we must create a workforce that is more empowered, more flexible, and more fulfilled. Over the long-term our 10 Year Health Plan will relieve NHS Staff of the unnecessary bureaucracy and empower them to reshape services to work for their patients.
We will work with the Social Partnership Forum to develop a set of Staff Standards so that all staff have access to healthy meals, support to work healthily and flexibly, and tackle violence, racism and sexual harassment.
The Staff Standards will support a workforce model that is fit for the future, where staff wellbeing is more than a ‘nice to have’.
How will patient flow through hospitals improve?
Hospitals are speeding up safe discharges to free up beds for those who need them.
They are also working more closely with GPs and community services to help patients leave hospital sooner and avoid unnecessary admissions.
We are taking a more collaborative approach to how care is delivered, making it more organised, proactive, and focused on the patient, ensuring teams work together effectively, use data and technology wisely, and allow people to receive the right care at the right time and place.
We are also strengthening the use of a Single Point of Contact – for example a dedicated phone number or service that makes it easy for patients, families, or community healthcare teams to get in touch with the right hospital team, ask questions, or get updates about care without needing to make multiple calls.
NHS leaders on the ground are being given more power to deliver local solutions, so they can ensure the right plans are in place to be able to support the needs of their local communities.
How are you supporting community services and social care?
Through the 10 Year Health Plan the government is expanding access to community care, urgent treatment centres, and rolling out technology to allow virtual healthcare services to reduce pressure on hospital A&E departments.
The shift from hospital to community will give older people more choice in how they access their care and make it more convenient as a wider range of services will be available at home or in the community. Quality of care will also be improved.
The shift from sickness to prevention will ensure older people are supported to maintain their independence with more services coming to them, rather than being delivered in hospital.
Our neighbourhood health programme will see 43 hubs covering 12 million people as part of the first phase. Each area will receive £10 million to transform care for people with long term conditions. And the government has confirmed that 250 new health ‘one stop shops’ will bring the right local combination from GPs, nurses, dentists and pharmacists together under one roof to best meet the needs of the community, starting in the most deprived areas, backed by £300 million of funding.
Around 100 community diagnostic centres now offer services, 12 hours a day, 7 days a week.
More funding is going into social care to help people return home safely, especially older and vulnerable patients. Longer-term, we have launched the Casey Commission to build cross-party consensus for a National Care Service.
What is “corridor care” and why is it a problem?
Corridor care is when patients are treated or held in hospital corridors because there aren’t enough beds or space. This can affect patient dignity, safety, and the quality of care. The government is committed to ending this practice.
When will you publish corridor care statistics?
To tackle a problem you’ve got to be honest about it. For the first time, the NHS will measure and publish the number of patients waiting in corridors. Sunlight is the best disinfectant.
This Government is committed to tackling the unacceptable practice of corridor care in our NHS. Our Urgent and Emergency Care Plan, published in June, set out steps we are taking, including the commitment to publish data on the prevalence of corridor care.
NHS England has been working with trusts since 2024 to put in place new reporting arrangements related to the use of corridor care, to drive improvement. Subject to a review of data quality, this information will be published shortly, and we will consider how this data could be published on a regular basis.
Will corridor care take over busy hospitals?
We’re working closely with the NHS to prepare for winter - from ‘war game’ exercises, to extra checks for the most vulnerable and rolling out vaccines - to ease pressure on hospitals and ensure patients get the care they need.
We’re investing nearly £450 million to expand urgent and emergency care facilities so patients get better, faster emergency care. It’s easier than ever to book vaccine appointments available at GP surgeries, pharmacies and community centres across the country so get vaccinated to protect yourself, and your loved ones this winter.
What about vaccinations?
Vaccines are one of the safest and most effective ways you can do this. They work by providing a barrier of protection to prevent serious illnesses that can cause lifelong problems or even death.
The NHS has delivered 14.4 million flu vaccines so far this autumn – over 160,000 more than they had at the same point last year.
This winter the government is ramping up activity ahead of winter more than ever before, encouraging people to ‘Stay Strong. Get Vaccinated’ and getting a flu vaccine is now as easy as ordering food or scheduling an appointment. Since the start of September, vaccination teams have been rolling out flu vaccines to pregnant women and children across maternity services, in school settings or GP practices, and pregnant women, younger children and those who miss their school or nursery session will also be able to get the vaccine at their local pharmacy or drop-in community clinic.
High street pharmacies are now offering flu vaccinations for 2- and 3-year-olds - in addition to the offer for all other eligible adults - in a bid to make it as easy as possible for people to get protected closer to home. Local NHS teams are making getting a catch-up vaccination as easy as possible by hosting community clinics closer to home – with sessions set up in bowling alleys, football pitches, libraries and sports halls.
Those eligible for a free Covid-19 vaccine will also be able to find their nearest drop-in clinic via the NHS walk-in finder.
This winter, we’re keeping vaccination windows open for longer, with appointments for COVID-19 vaccinations will be available until Friday 30 January 2026, with flu jabs offered until the end of March 2026.
How is technology helping?
Hospitals are adopting digital platforms to monitor and manage bed availability in real-time, reducing bottlenecks, while data tools are being used to forecast demand surges and allocate resources proactively and manage patient flow more effectively.
We are also investing £20 million so paramedics can access patient records from all NHS services, helping avoid unnecessary hospital admissions.
The NHS Federated Data Platform is being rolled out to 85% of acute trusts by March 2026, giving frontline staff a single view of operational systems to manage demand better.
Furthermore, national standards for care technology will be set by March 2026 to reduce falls—which cost the NHS £2.3 billion annually —including remote monitoring that has halved falls in care homes, meaning less visits to A&E.
How will progress be monitored?
The NHS has set clear targets and standards, including eliminating corridor care. Hospitals will be regularly inspected, and data on corridor care will be published for transparency.
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