County Durham and Darlington NHS Foundation Trust (CDDFT), which runs hospitals across the region, laid bare the scale of its financial challenges at its Annual General Meeting (AGM) on Tuesday (October 20).
The troubled organisation, which has faced intense scrutiny over serious failings in its breast cancer service, ended the 2025/26 financial year £21.9million in the red.
This comes six months after an announcement that the Trust is planning to cut about 600 full-time equivalent roles from its workforce over the next two years, including at the University Hospital North Durham and Darlington Memorial Hospital, as well as other community hospital sites around the region.
Chief finance officer Hayley Wardell said the figures “underline the scale of the challenges experienced by this Trust and others across the UK”.
County Durham and Darlington NHS Foundation Trust (Image: NORTHERN ECHO)
The trust’s spending rose by £54.7m in 2025/26, while capital spending reached £25.9m.
An audit also identified three weaknesses: financial sustainability, governance arrangements and financial governance.
Ms Wardell said: “These figures have been identified as a cause for concern, but they show the financial difficulty that health organisations have currently.
“We have put a plan in place to regain financial responsibility, including supporting the NHS ten-year plan.”
The trust also received a £10m cash injection from NHS England, easing the pressure on its finances.
But Ms Wardell said the audit found the trust was a “financially viable organisation going forward”.
She said a new team was in place to tackle the trust’s finances and cut its deficit.
Following the meeting, the chief finance officer added: “Like many NHS organisations, we face serious financial challenges, and we have been open about these and the work needed to put things right.
“We have made some positive progress. We are working with teams across the Trust to look at how we can do things differently, make better use of our time and resources and find new ideas that help us work more efficiently.
“There is still a lot to do, but we want to build on this progress and make sure we are making the best use of every pound we spend.
Darlington Memorial Hospital (Image: NORTHERN ECHO)
“Improving our finances must support – not compete with the delivery of safe, high-quality care.
“We want to make the best use of the resources we have so we can provide the best possible care for our patients, now and in the future.”
The meeting came six months after the trust confirmed plans to cut about 600 full-time equivalent roles over two years amid “significant” financial challenges.
Trust bosses said the cuts would follow a “measured approach”, including a voluntary severance scheme, without disrupting healthcare services and that it will continue for roles considered essential to patient safety and service delivery.
The financial crisis and planned job cuts come as the trust faces mounting problems.
A report into its breast services last year found that unnecessary surgeries were carried out, cancers were missed and poor standards of care were delivered at hospitals in Durham and Darlington, with reviewers calling it a “decade of systemic failures”.
A review has so far found that 315 of 514 cases examined involved harm, including 77 cases of significant harm and at least 20 unnecessary mastectomies.
The breast-care review is being extended backwards towards 2015, while Durham Police and the National Crime Agency investigate whether criminal offences were committed.
Elsewhere, the Care Quality Commission rated the trust’s leadership ‘inadequate’ after an inspection in December 2025.
University Hospital of North Durham in Durham City (Image: Chris Booth)
The watchdog found “serious weaknesses in governance, risk management and the handling of patient safety incidents and complaints,” and accused the trust of “turning a blind eye”.
And earlier this month, it was announced that the Trust would be closing a ward at Bishop Auckland Hospital and moving several wards around at Darlington Memorial Hospital.
The trust plans to move frailty unit Ward 7 from Bishop Auckland to Darlington Memorial Hospital and close a surgical ward there.
The plans would not cost staff their jobs at either hospital, but workers told The Northern Echo they feared for their future roles before Christmas.
The trust says the ward changes will make all its hospitals “winter-ready” and improve care for frail patients.
But a trade union has demanded answers about the impact on staff, patients and services, while campaigners, unions and councillors called the Bishop Auckland closure “another nail in the coffin” for the site.
Later in the meeting, despite reporting improvements in emergency care, cancer treatment and waiting times, NHS chiefs acknowledged that too many patients were still facing lengthy delays.
The Trust, which employs more than 8,000 staff, described 2025/26 as one of its most difficult years, with leaders highlighting the challenges of restoring public confidence while improving services and tackling financial pressures.
Figures presented at the meeting revealed that more than 79 per cent of patients attending emergency care were seen, treated or admitted within four hours.
Meanwhile, more than 66 per cent of patients received planned treatment within 18 weeks of being referred by their GP.
More than 79 per cent of cancer patients also began their first treatment within 62 days of GP referral.
The Trust said it had met three national NHS priorities during the year, but acknowledged there was still significant work to do to reduce waiting times further.
Bosses also admitted improvements were needed in how quickly patients were told whether they had cancer following diagnostic tests.
However, leaders insisted progress had been made in the Trust’s breast cancer service following the serious failings which have overshadowed the organisation.