/ Report

NHS physiotherapy waiting times by region: July 2026

442,807 people were waiting for NHS community musculoskeletal physiotherapy in England in July 2026. 71,863 of them, 16.2%, had already waited more than 18 weeks, and 1,193 more than a year.

Across the 25 regions whose returns were consistent in both months, the list grew by 2.6% between April 2026 and July 2026, from 320,389 to 328,762. The number waiting more than 18 weeks in those regions went from 54,908 to 59,349.

Source: NHS England, Community Health Services waiting lists. The latest month published is July 2026.

Where people have waited longest

The regions with the largest share of their list waiting more than 18 weeks, among lists of 2,000 people or more.

  1. Surrey And Sussex: 41.7% (21,401 of 51,347 people)
  2. South West London: 35.3% (5,636 of 15,951 people)
  3. Bristol, North Somerset And South Gloucestershire: 27.9% (2,261 of 8,117 people) · returns changed since April 2026, so compare with care
  4. Gloucestershire: 27.8% (2,203 of 7,920 people)
  5. West And North London: 21.3% (6,093 of 28,599 people)

Share of each region's list waiting more than 18 weeks

  • Surrey And Sussex 41.7%
  • South West London 35.3%
  • Bristol, North Somerset And South Gloucestershire 27.9%
  • Gloucestershire 27.8%
  • West And North London 21.3%
  • Cheshire And Merseyside 17.8%
  • Thames Valley 17.8%
  • Lancashire And South Cumbria 16.8%
  • Central East 16.6%
  • Herefordshire And Worcestershire 14.3%
  • Cornwall And The Isles Of Scilly 14.2%
  • West Yorkshire 14%
  • North East And North Cumbria 13.3%
  • South Yorkshire 13.3%
  • Birmingham And Solihull 11.1%
  • South East London 11%
  • Dorset 10.1%
  • Northamptonshire 9.5%
  • Hampshire And Isle Of Wight 8.7%
  • Greater Manchester 7.1%
  • Somerset 4.7%
  • Essex * 4.1%
  • Norfolk And Suffolk 4.1%
  • North East London 4.1%
  • Black Country 3.9%
  • Coventry And Warwickshire 3.9%
  • Staffordshire And Stoke-On-Trent 3.8%
  • Devon 2.6%
  • Leicester, Leicestershire And Rutland 1.3%
  • Humber And North Yorkshire 1%
  • Kent And Medway 0.7%
  • Nottingham And Nottinghamshire 0.6%
  • Derby And Derbyshire * 0.3%
  • Lincolnshire * 0%
People on the list in July 2026 who had already waited more than 18 weeks, as a share of everyone waiting in that region. * A list of fewer than 2,000 people, which may reflect missing returns rather than short waits.

Every region

Region Waiting Over 18 weeks Over a year Estimated typical wait so far Private first appointment
51,347 21,401 (41.7%) 673 about 15 weeks –
15,951 5,636 (35.3%) 384 about 11 weeks –
8,117 2,261 (27.9%) 96 about 10 weeks –
7,920 2,203 (27.8%) 1 about 11 weeks –
28,599 6,093 (21.3%) 3 about 8 weeks –
26,762 4,776 (17.8%) 7 about 9 weeks £48 to £80 (13 clinics)
16,191 2,888 (17.8%) 0 about 8 weeks –
2,518 422 (16.8%) 22 about 6 weeks –
31,352 5,214 (16.6%) 1 about 10 weeks –
6,204 885 (14.3%) 0 about 8 weeks –
8,266 1,175 (14.2%) 0 about 8 weeks –
18,161 2,551 (14%) 0 about 9 weeks –
46,977 6,266 (13.3%) 1 about 7 weeks –
8,617 1,149 (13.3%) 0 about 8 weeks –
18,221 2,030 (11.1%) 0 about 8 weeks –
3,518 388 (11%) 0 about 7 weeks –
3,671 371 (10.1%) 0 about 11 weeks –
4,110 391 (9.5%) 0 about 4 weeks –
17,500 1,520 (8.7%) 0 about 6 weeks –
15,545 1,100 (7.1%) 2 about 7 weeks £50 to £80 (17 clinics)
10,632 505 (4.7%) 0 about 6 weeks –
1,158 48 (4.1%) 0 about 5 weeks –
10,407 422 (4.1%) 1 about 6 weeks –
19,662 808 (4.1%) 0 about 5 weeks –
8,687 336 (3.9%) 0 about 4 weeks –
3,683 142 (3.9%) 0 about 7 weeks –
10,476 402 (3.8%) 0 about 5 weeks £69 to £80 (3 clinics)
9,479 245 (2.6%) 2 about 6 weeks –
5,879 77 (1.3%) 0 about 4 weeks –
3,501 34 (1%) 0 about 5 weeks –
11,747 85 (0.7%) 0 about 5 weeks –
5,571 36 (0.6%) 0 about 5 weeks –
1,183 3 (0.3%) 0 about 2 weeks –
1,195 0 (0%) 0 about 4 weeks –

No data reported for July 2026: Bath And North East Somerset, Swindon And Wiltshire, Shropshire, Telford And Wrekin. That is not the same as having no waiting list.

How to read these figures

  • The counts are NHS England's, as providers reported them: people on a community musculoskeletal physiotherapy waiting list at the end of the month, grouped by how long they had waited so far. Not every provider reports every month, so a small list can mean missing returns rather than short waits.
  • The typical wait is our estimate. NHS England publishes bands, not individual waits, so the middle wait is worked out from the bands and is approximate.
  • NHS England merged several regions in March 2026. Changes over time are only given between months that cover exactly the same regions.
  • Providers join and leave the monthly returns, which can halve or double a region's list in a quarter without anyone being seen. A region whose list moved by 20% or more in 3 months is treated as a change in who reported: no change is quoted for it, and it is left out of the trend above. For July 2026 that is Birmingham And Solihull, Bristol, North Somerset And South Gloucestershire, Central East, Essex, Leicester, Leicestershire And Rutland, Norfolk And Suffolk, North East London, Somerset, South Yorkshire.
  • Private prices are first appointments at physiotherapy clinics bookable on MediMo, shown only for regions with at least three. .

Contains public sector information licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0. You are welcome to quote these figures; please credit MediMo and link to this page.