The Shrewsbury and Telford Hospital Trust (SaTH), which runs the Royal Shrewsbury Hospital and the Princess Royal Hospital in Telford, is now ranked amongst the top-performing half of NHS trusts in England for the proportion of patients waiting less than six weeks for a diagnostic test.

Figures show that in July this year, 82.1 per cent of patients who were referred for diagnostic tests were seen within six weeks. 

Furthermore, the hospital trust has also achieved an 87 per cent reduction in the number of patients waiting more than 13 weeks for a test, and a 40 per cent reduction in the total number of patients waiting for diagnostic procedures in the past year.

SaTH said the improvement is the result of increased scanning and reporting capacity, alongside the hard work of staff.

A Cardiac Physiologist at SaTH at work. Picture: SaTHA Cardiac Physiologist at SaTH at work. Picture: SaTH

Ned Hobbs, Chief Operating Officer, said: “Whilst we are making progress, we are humble and know we have more to do. 

“Behind every number is a person and their loved ones and that is what drives our improvement work. We want to reduce waiting times to ensure our patients receive a diagnosis as quickly as possible, and that everyone has the best care and experience whilst using our services.

“A big thank you to our fantastic teams whose commitment and dedication to our patients has been key in driving our improvements.”

Diagnostic tests are carried out across both hospitals and at the Community Diagnostic Centre (CDC) at Stafford Park in Telford, which opened in October 2023. SaTH said the new facility has significantly boosted capacity for elective diagnostic tests and scans, including radiology (CT, X-ray, ultrasound and MRI), cardiorespiratory, phlebotomy, and teledermatology.

Currently open six days a week, the CDC is aiming to expand to 12 hours a day, seven days a week, to further reduce waiting times and improve patient access.

The overall waiting times for cancer imaging diagnostics have also improved at SaTH, with the trust recording its best performance in 18 months against the national Faster Diagnosis Standard (FDS) in July. The FDS requires that patients with suspected cancer should receive a diagnosis or the all-clear within 28 days of referral.

The Princess Royal Hospital in Telford. The Princess Royal Hospital in Telford

In addition, the trust achieved its best cancer 62-day referral-to-treatment performance in more than three years, and the number of patients waiting longer than 62 days is now at its lowest level for more than four years.

An investment supporting this progress is the installation of a new linear accelerator (LINAC) at the Royal Shrewsbury Hospital. The state-of-the-art machine is used in cancer treatment to deliver high-energy X-rays or electrons directly to tumours while minimising exposure to surrounding healthy tissue.

This success in Shropshire comes amid continued national pressure on hospital waiting times. Across England, 1,416 patients were waiting more than 18 months for routine treatment at the end of August 2025, down from 3,335 a year earlier.

Meanwhile, the number of people waiting more than a year for treatment has fallen from 282,664 in August last year to 191,493 this summer. The Government and NHS England have set a target to reduce that figure to below one per cent by March next year.