Untreated A&E Departures Triple in England

The number of people leaving A&E departments in England without receiving treatment has tripled in the past six years, according to new figures.

Analysis of NHS data by the Royal College of Nursing reveals that increasing demand for urgent hospital care and extended wait times have contributed to a “shocking” rise in patients departing emergency departments untreated.

Between July and September 2025, over 320,000 individuals left A&E without being seen – a more than threefold increase from the same period in 2019, when approximately 100,000 patients walked out untreated.

The primary reason for leaving was frustration with lengthy wait times. The RCN’s analysis also showed a 90-fold increase in patients waiting more than 12 hours, rising from 1,281 in 2019 to 116,141 in 2025.

Prof Nicola Ranger, the RCN’s general secretary and chief executive, criticized the lack of urgency in addressing the crisis. “Skyrocketing numbers leaving emergency departments without treatment is dangerous and a sign of a broken system,” she stated.

“The failure to adequately resource primary and community care services forces people to seek help at A&E. Simultaneously, patients ready for discharge remain in hospital due to a lack of support closer to home. This results in overwhelmed acute services, exhausted staff, and frustrated patients who may return in worse condition.”

A separate report by healthcare analysts LaingBuisson suggests the NHS may face further strain as fewer patients can afford private care.

NHS-funded care delivered by autonomous acute hospitals reached a record £2.2bn in 2024. However, tim Read, LaingBuisson’s head of research and author of the report, noted that the number of individuals paying for private treatment grew by only 0.1%.