Hospitals serving Wiltshire residents recorded some of their longest A&E waits on record last year, with one patient waiting 90 hours - nearly four days from arrival to admission.
Data obtained through a Freedom of Information request submitted by the Liberal Democrats, shows that 2,934 patients waited more than 24 hours in A&E in 2025 across the three hospital trusts serving Wiltshire. That is an increase of 1,310 compared to 2024.
The figures cover:
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Royal United Hospitals Bath
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Salisbury NHS Foundation Trust
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Great Western Hospitals Trust
At Great Western Hospitals Trust, the nearest hospital for many residents in Calne and surrounding areas, 1,560 patients waited more than 24 hours in A&E in 2025, up from 900 the previous year. The longest recorded wait from arrival to admission was 5,400 minutes, equivalent to 90 hours.
At Salisbury NHS Foundation Trust, 466 patients waited more than 24 hours in 2025, compared to 106 in 2024. The longest wait recorded there was 48 hours.
Royal United Hospitals Bath recorded 908 patients waiting more than 24 hours in 2025, up from 618 in 2024. No individual wait times exceeding 24 hours were recorded in the FOI’s “longest wait” column for 2025, although hundreds of patients still experienced extended waits.
In total, the longest single recorded wait across the trusts reached 138 hours over the two-year period.
Wiltshire MP Sarah Gibson said the figures reflect wider pressures across the health and social care system.
“These agonising A&E waits tell us that the broader system is broken. NHS staff are doing everything they can, but they are being asked to work within a system that lacks beds, staff, and social care capacity. When I was rushed to RUH in 2024, I saw first-hand how access to timely emergency care too often depends on luck.
“In Wiltshire, we also have the additional problem that we have no NHS dentists left. It is also increasingly difficult to see a GP, especially if you do not have access to good public transport. A lack of access to basic primary NHS care means that we are failing to prevent problems from becoming emergencies. The crisis in social care also means that there is often nowhere appropriate for A&E to discharge some patients to.
“A lack of preventative healthcare combined with the social care crisis is why Wiltshire is suffering so much. That is not the fault of frontline workers, but the consequence of sustained mismanagement at the top.” she said.
A spokesperson for Great Western Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust said: “When our urgent and emergency care services are very busy, patients sometimes may need to wait longer for care whilst our staff treat those in the most serious or life-threatening conditions. We are sorry to those who have had to wait.
“It is really important that people continue to come forward for the care that they need – using NHS 111 online first and 999 in an emergency. To avoid longer waits in hospital, we encourage everyone to make use of the expertise of local pharmacies, GPs and community services for less urgent needs.”
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