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Referral to treatment (RTT) data for August 2026, published 8 October 2026 · Page updated 2 November 2026

Ear, nose and throat (ENT) waiting times at The Royal Wolverhampton NHS Trust

NHS England referral to treatment (RTT) figures for consultant-led ENT care at The Royal Wolverhampton NHS Trust, in the NHS England Midlands region. Patients waiting at the end of August 2026. Ear, nose and throat (ENT) covers the ear, nose, throat, head and neck, for example hearing problems, sinus problems and tonsils.

Short answer: At the end of August 2026, 6,334 pathways were waiting for consultant-led ENT care at The Royal Wolverhampton NHS Trust. Half had waited 17.1 weeks or less so far (England 15.4 weeks), 52.7% had waited under 18 weeks (England 56.8%; standard 92%) and 171 had waited over 52 weeks.

Source: NHS England referral to treatment (RTT) statistics, published 8 October 2026. These are past figures, not a forecast of how long you will wait.

17.1 wksmedian wait so far: half had waited less (England 15.4 weeks)
52.7%waiting under 18 weeks (England 56.8%; standard 92%)
6,334pathways waiting at the end of August 2026
171waiting over 52 weeks (2.7% of the list)

Figures are for patients waiting at the end of August 2026 (NHS England RTT, published 8 October 2026). They show how long people had waited so far, not how long a new referral will wait, and they are not a guarantee of any wait. A pathway is one patient’s wait for one specialty; a person can be on more than one list.

Ear, nose and throat (ENT) at The Royal Wolverhampton: summary

At The Royal Wolverhampton, patients on the ENT list at the end of August 2026 had waited a median of 17.1 weeks, longer than the England figure of 15.4 weeks (by 1.7 weeks, or 11%). Its share waiting under 18 weeks, 52.7%, was in line with the Midlands region as a whole (52.6%). Of 112 NHS trusts with at least 20 ENT pathways waiting, 81 reported a shorter median and 29 a longer one, which puts The Royal Wolverhampton in the middle half. The figures improved between the end of February 2026 and August 2026: the median fell from 18.1 weeks to 17.1 weeks and the list shrank by 248 pathways (4%). Over the same months the England median went from 15.8 weeks to 15.4 weeks. 171 pathways (2.7% of the list) had waited over 52 weeks, above the England share of 2.0%. 17 of the 24 other NHS trusts within 60 miles had a shorter median; the nearest were Walsall Healthcare (about 4 miles away, median 11.9 weeks) and University Hospitals Birmingham (about 12 miles away, median 12.8 weeks).

How does The Royal Wolverhampton compare for ENT?

Ear, nose and throat (ENT) waits, end of August 2026
MeasureThe Royal WolverhamptonMidlands regionEngland
Pathways waiting6,334109,317590,233
Waited under 18 weeks52.7%52.6%56.8%
Median weeks waited17.1not calculated15.4
92nd percentile weeks waited43not calculated42
Waited over 52 weeks171 (2.7%)2,204 (2.0%)12,031 (2.0%)

Region figures are a Waiting Times UK calculation: we add up NHS England’s figures for the 22 NHS and independent providers in the Midlands region with this specialty. Medians and percentiles cannot be added up, so we do not show them for the region. The under-18-weeks share leaves out pathways with an unknown start date, as NHS England does.

Of the 112 NHS trusts in England with at least 20 ENT pathways waiting, 81 had a shorter median wait than The Royal Wolverhampton and 29 a longer one. See every trust on the ENT waits page.

Has the ENT wait at The Royal Wolverhampton changed?

At the end of February 2026, 6,582 pathways were waiting and the median wait so far was 18.1 weeks. At the end of August 2026, 6,334 pathways were waiting and the median was 17.1 weeks. Past changes do not predict future waits.

The Royal Wolverhampton: median ENT wait (weeks)1315161819Feb 26Mar 26Apr 26May 26Jun 26Jul 26Aug 26

The Royal Wolverhampton: median ENT wait (weeks) England ENT

Ear, nose and throat (ENT) at The Royal Wolverhampton, month by month
Month endWaitingMedian weeksUnder 18 weeksOver 52 weeks
February 20266,58218.149.8%171
March 20266,40116.852.4%127
April 20266,35916.451.8%144
May 20265,83118.149.7%196
June 20266,49415.955.9%144
July 20266,40116.154.1%154
August 20266,33417.152.7%171

Which nearby trusts treat ENT?

Ear, nose and throat (ENT): nearby NHS trusts, end of August 2026
Nearby trustDistanceMedian weeksUnder 18 weeksWaiting
Walsall Healthcare NHS Trustabout 4 miles11.968.6%2,746
The Dudley Group NHS Foundation Trustabout 7 miles17.451.4%4,933
Sandwell and West Birmingham Hospitals NHS Trustabout 10 miles23.938.6%7,468
University Hospitals Birmingham NHS Foundation Trustabout 12 miles12.867.7%8,450
George Eliot Hospital NHS Trustabout 27 miles23.439.8%2,242
University Hospitals of North Midlands NHS Trustabout 28 miles15.456.0%4,214

Straight-line distance between the trusts’ registered addresses in the NHS Organisation Data Service. A trust may run several hospitals, so the site you are treated at can be elsewhere. Only trusts with at least 20 ENT pathways waiting are listed.

Find ENT waits near your postcode (England only).

Can I choose a hospital with a shorter wait?

In England you have a legal right to start consultant-led, non-urgent treatment within 18 weeks of referral, with some exceptions, and you can usually choose where you are referred for a first outpatient appointment. Each hospital has a Patient Advice and Liaison Service (PALS) that can help with questions about your wait. Your waiting time rights explained.

Not medical advice. If your symptoms change or get worse while you wait, contact your GP or the team treating you. If it is not an emergency, NHS 111 online or calling 111 can tell you where to go, including urgent treatment centres, which often have shorter waits. Call 999 or go to A&E for life-threatening emergencies such as chest pain, difficulty breathing, severe bleeding or signs of a stroke.

More waiting times

Other specialties at The Royal Wolverhampton

Frequently asked questions

How long is the wait for ENT at The Royal Wolverhampton?

At the end of August 2026, half of the 6,334 pathways waiting for ENT at The Royal Wolverhampton NHS Trust had waited 17.1 weeks or less, and 52.7% had waited under 18 weeks. This is how long people on the list had waited so far, not a prediction of how long a new referral will take.

How does The Royal Wolverhampton compare with England for ENT?

Across England the median ENT wait was 15.4 weeks and 56.8% had waited under 18 weeks at the end of August 2026. Of 112 NHS trusts with at least 20 pathways waiting, 81 had a shorter median wait.

Is this page from the NHS?

No. Waiting Times UK is an independent website, not part of the NHS, and this is not medical advice. The figures are NHS England’s, reproduced under the Open Government Licence.

How should I cite these figures?

Waiting Times UK, “Ear, nose and throat (ENT) waiting times at The Royal Wolverhampton NHS Trust”, NHS England RTT data for August 2026, https://waitingtimesuk.co.uk/specialty-waits/the-royal-wolverhampton-nhs-trust/ent (accessed [date]). Where possible, cite the official publisher too.

Who wrote this page and where do the figures come from?

Written and maintained by the Waiting Times UK editorial team at Oaknest Media Ltd, an independent publisher that is not part of the NHS. Every figure is taken from an official publication, shown with its date, and linked below; where we add up or compare figures ourselves we say so. This page has not been reviewed by a clinician and is not medical advice. Page last updated 2 November 2026, from the data files named below. Figures change when the publisher releases new data.

Official statistics are reproduced under the Open Government Licence v3.0. See data sources and methods and about Waiting Times UK.

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