NHS figures for the East of England show productivity improved during winter, with waiting lists falling and ambulance response times getting quicker despite high demand.
The latest data says NHS trusts in the region recorded an estimated average productivity growth of 3.1 per cent in November 2025. Productivity measures compare levels of hospital and ambulance activity with those of previous months.
Separate winter figures also show A&E demand remained high, with more than 924,000 attendances across hospitals in the East of England between November 2025 and February 2026.
Despite that pressure, the NHS says waiting times were shorter than during the previous two winters.
Read: Ambulance Trust chair defends closure of Bedford’s Emergency Operations Centre
Across the region, 73.8 per cent of people attending A&E were admitted, transferred or discharged within four hours. That was slightly above the national average of 73.6 per cent and up from 68.7 per cent in winter 2023/24.
The overall waiting list in the East of England also fell to 908,000 in January 2026, down by 14,772 from the previous month.
Ambulance response times improve
Ambulance demand in the region remained high, with 339,343 call-outs over winter. That was up from around 313,000 in 2024/25 and 297,000 in 2023/24.
Even so, NHS England said average Category 2 ambulance response times, covering serious conditions such as strokes and heart attacks, were reduced by more than seven minutes compared with last winter.
Read: “Major milestone” as East of England Ambulance Service comes out of ‘special measures’
The East of England Ambulance Service recorded productivity growth of 9.8 per cent in November, one of the highest figures among ambulance trusts in the country.
Professor Edward Morris, Regional Medical Director for the NHS in the East of England, said: “Through the hard work of staff, the region’s health providers continued to improve productivity and were well prepared ahead of facing some of the highest winter demand ever…
“We’re seeing patients more quickly, and waiting lists have continued to fall. This is evidence that the NHS is starting to turn a corner for patients, but we know there is still much more to do.”
