The NHS has for the first time published league tables ranking every trust in England.
The Department of Health and Social Care (DHSC) has said each trust will be ranked quarterly on the standards of its services, from urgent and emergency care to elective operations and mental health support.
The tables see trusts categorised in four segments, with the first reflecting the best performers and the fourth showing the worst.
Those doing the best will be rewarded with greater freedoms and investment, while those underperforming will receive targeted support.
To allow for fair comparisons, the trusts ware grouped into acute, non-acute and ambulance trusts.
Use the tools below to see how yours rank:
This will help end the postcode lottery, says Streeting
The move is part of the government’s 10-year plan to reform the health service.
Health Secretary Wes Streeting said: “We must be honest about the state of the NHS to fix it.
“Patients know when local services aren’t up to scratch, and they want to see an end to the postcode lottery – that’s what this government is doing.
“We’re combining the extra £26bn investment each year with tough reforms to get value for money, with every pound helping to cut waiting times for patients.”
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From next year, the NHS will introduce a new wave of Foundation Trusts, giving the best performers more freedom to shape services around local needs, and those in the middle will be encouraged to learn from the top trusts.
Meanwhile, those with lower scores will receive enhanced support – and senior leaders will be held accountable with performance-linked pay.
Where trusts are persistently failing, senior managers could see their pay docked, the DHSC has said.
The best NHS leaders will be offered higher pay to taken on the toughest jobs at challenged services, it added.
Health correspondent
The trouble with league tables is, however well-intentioned, they become a competition.
As soon as I saw the list, I scanned it to see where the trusts I’ve received care from had been placed.
Then I looked for the ones where my family and loved ones had been looked after.
It’s a completely natural reaction.
What comes next is the worry you might feel as a patient about to go into a hospital that has been placed into segment four – the lowest ranking.
It means your trust has been identified as one where the standard of care is poor and needs intervention.
This isn’t, of course, what this list is designed to do: spread fear and panic.
Quite the reverse, in fact.
It’s supposed to provide transparency. To give patients information and a voice (they’ll be asked to give feedback that will affect gradings).
The worst performing trusts will be given more help and the best NHS leaders will be given financial incentives to encourage them to move to these failing hospitals.
This is supposed to end the “postcode lottery”.
It’s a great idea in theory. You cannot stop while that process is under way.
The purpose of the tables, I was reminded, is not to “name and shame” but ensure the best quality patient care is standardised across the country.
Sir Jim Mackey, chief executive of NHS England, said: “Letting patients and the public access more data will help to drive improvement even faster by supporting them to identify where they should demand even better from their NHS.”
It will also put “more power in their hands to make informed decisions on their choice of provider”, he said.
By summer 2026, the tables will expand to cover integrated care boards, which are the NHS organisations responsible for planning health services for locals.
