Video shared with the ECHO shows a corridor full of trolleys as patients wait for bedsPatients waiting for beds at Liverpool Royal
Patients are being left to lie on trolleys in corridors at the Royal Liverpool Hospital for hours on end, the ECHO understands. Video from the hospital shows a corridor full of trolleys as patients wait for beds.
The video, taken Friday (February 13), shows trolleys lining the wall for the full length of the corridor. Patients, some elderly and some wearing oxygen masks, lie on the trolleys. Some have visitors with them.
The patient who took the video said: “The sight is something else. Elderly and very sick people are having their dignity taken away. They’re having to discuss personal circumstances for anyone to hear.
“I heard at least 10 different peoples diagnoses. I felt so sorry for some of them. I witnessed a man on a ventilator in a corridor and I was absolutely gobsmacked.”
The ECHO understands that a second corridor was being used to accommodate patients who had recently come off wards and were awaiting discharge.
Trolleys on a corridor at the Royal Liverpool Hospital.(Image: Supplied)
They added that the corridor was “pristine” thanks to cleaners and praised nurses “doing their best to keep up with demand”. NHS University Hospitals of Liverpool Group said it is working hard to reduce the use of corridor care as much as possible.
Data from the Royal Liverpool Hospital shows 1,605 patients waited more than 12 hours in A&E in January 2026, just shy of a fifth of all patients arriving to A&E at the Royal. The number of patients waiting more than 12 hours increased by 234 on the previous January.
A&E arrivals at the Royal increased by 1,074 between January 2025 and January 2026. National data shows a record number of people are waiting over 12 hours in A&E.
More than 71,500 attendances at A&E in England this January had to wait over 12 hours from a decision to admit to admission. That’s up from nearly 50,800 in December and 50,600 in November. The number is the highest on record, easily surpassing the 61,500 set in January 2025.
A spokesperson for the UK’s largest healthcare union, UNISON, described trolley queues and corridor care as being “among the most visible signs of the state the NHS is in.” They added: “These issues won’t be solved until ministers get to grips with the staffing crisis. Delivering fair pay for NHS staff and a proper workforce plan are key to dealing with recruitment and retention.”
Trolleys on a corridor at the Royal Liverpool Hospital.(Image: Supplied)
Earlier this month, the ECHO told how Arrowe Park Hospital on the Wirral was in crisis as patients on trolleys lined corridors and ambulances queued up outside carrying sick and ill people.
And in January, the ECHO revealed an elderly woman had died alone on a trolley in a corridor with exhausted staff unable to care for her.
Duncan Burton, Chief Nursing Officer for England, said: “Completing a historic high of elective activity is a triumph for NHS staff who continue to innovate and go above and beyond to treat more patients, faster.
“Thanks to early preparations and careful planning, ambulance waits are shorter and A&E treatment times are faster this winter – even as staff face record demand – while we know there is further to go in improving patient flow and cutting the longest emergency department waits.”
“We saw a great response from the public with many people getting protected against winter viruses this year, which is paying off for patients and keeping more people well and at home.
Trolleys on a corridor at the Royal Liverpool Hospital.(Image: Supplied)
“With a particularly wet start to the year and cold weather alerts issued for England over the weekend, as ever, it’s really important the public continue to come forward for care in the usual way – by dialling 999 in an emergency and otherwise using 111 online, your local pharmacist or GP”.
Health and Social Care Secretary, Wes Streeting said: “Despite having to deal with flu and industrial action, the NHS has managed to continue cutting waiting lists, thanks to a Herculean effort this winter.
“This government has cut waiting lists by more than 330,000, with hundreds of thousands more people treated within 18 weeks. That’s not happening by chance – it’s because we delivered record levels of care in 2025.
“This progress is driven by unprecedented investment and modernisation of our health service, and above all by the dedication of NHS staff.
“Whether it’s by opening up new community diagnostic centres, rolling out surgical hubs to tackle backlogs, or investing in modern equipment and technology, we are rebuilding our NHS.
“There’s so much more to do, but people can take hope and optimism from the fact that the NHS is finally on the road to recovery.”
A spokesperson for NHS University Hospitals of Liverpool Group said: “Providing care in corridors is not what we want for our patients. Like many hospitals, we are currently facing significant pressure in our Emergency Departments where our sickest patients have to be prioritised. We are working hard to reduce the use of corridor care as much as possible.”
Do you have a information, a tip or a story? Contact jon.blackburn@liverpoolecho.co.uk
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