A&E Major Trauma Centre All ages

Derriford Hospital (Plymouth) A&E Waiting Times

University Hospitals Plymouth NHS Trust

3.7(604 reviews)
Live Updated 7 min ago
24h 57m
estimated wait time
↑ 1009 min longer than usual (8 hr 8 min avg)
23 hr 57 min
longest today
12 hr 12 min
shortest today
8 hr 8 min
usual wait
Typical wait for non-urgent cases. Patients are seen in order of clinical priority. The most seriously ill are always seen first, no matter how busy the department is.
This data might be old - tap to refresh
25 people
waiting
Call A&E
The wait time shown above does not apply to urgent or life-threatening cases, which are seen first regardless of the queue. Not sure if you need A&E? Visit NHS 111 online or call 111 (free, 24 hours a day). Life-threatening emergency or serious injury? Call 999.
Recent waits & what to expect
Forecast Waits set to rise
Expected wait over the next few hours
22 hr 10 min

Built from 3,914 readings taken here over the last 28 days, then adjusted to how today is going so far. A guide, not a guarantee.

Typical waits by time of day
Usually quietest around 1pm - busiest around 7am
Typical waits by day of week
Tuesday tends to be quietest, Friday busiest
Nearby A&E & urgent care
Dartmoor Building Urgent Treatment Centre
0.2 mi away
Long wait
Cumberland Centre Urgent Treatment Centre
4.0 mi away
Long wait
Tavistock MIU
9.2 mi away
Moderate wait
Liskeard MIU
15.1 mi away
Short wait
Kingsbridge MIU
17.2 mi away
Short wait

There are also other nearby A&Es which collect wait times from the community, including Newquay, Dorset County Hospital and Weston General Hospital.

Contact & location
Derriford Road, Crownhill, Plymouth, Devon, PL6 8DH
Derriford Hospital A&E in Plymouth
Opening times
MondayOpen 24 hours
TuesdayOpen 24 hours
WednesdayOpen 24 hours
ThursdayOpen 24 hours
FridayOpen 24 hours
SaturdayOpen 24 hours
Sunday TodayOpen 24 hours
CQC Rating
requires improvement
Getting here
Bus stops
15 routes·3 operators·5 stops within walking distance
Derriford Hospital (Stand 1, westbound)1 min walk to A&E
1StagecoachTavistock ↔ Plymouth City Centre
1AStagecoachSouthway ↔ Sherford
42Go-AheadSouthway ↔ Plymouth City Centre
42AGo-AheadTamerton Foliot ↔ Plymouth City Centre
42BGo-AheadBelliver ↔ Plymouth City Centre
42CGo-AheadWoolwell ↔ Plymouth City Centre
42DGo-AheadTamerton Foliot ↔ Plymouth City Centre
Derriford Hospital (Stand 7, north-east)1 min walk to A&E
14Go-AheadDerriford ↔ Plymouth City Centre
14StagecoachDerriford ↔ Plymouth City Centre
14Plymouth CitybusPlymouth City Centre ↔ Derriford
27StagecoachDerriford ↔ Plymouth City Centre
Derriford Hospital (Stand 6, eastbound)1 min walk to A&E
1StagecoachPlymouth City Centre ↔ Tavistock
1AStagecoachSherford ↔ Southway
34Go-AheadPlymouth City Centre ↔ Estover
42BGo-AheadPlymouth City Centre ↔ Belliver
42BPlymouth CitybusPlymouth City Centre ↔ Belliver
42CGo-AheadPlymouth City Centre ↔ Woolwell
Derriford Hospital (Stand 2, westbound)1 min walk to A&E
14Go-AheadDerriford ↔ Plymouth City Centre
14StagecoachDerriford ↔ Plymouth City Centre
28Go-AheadSouthway ↔ Plymouth City Centre
34Go-AheadEstover ↔ Plymouth City Centre
34Plymouth CitybusMilehouse ↔ Derriford
Derriford Hospital (SW-bound, south-west)1 min walk to A&E
Plan journey by public transport
Plymouth A&E wait times - last 24 hours
Hour Avg. wait People waiting
Today, 12 PM
avg. of 4 readings
 - 28
Today, 11 AM
avg. of 4 readings
 23 hr 35 min 28
Today, 10 AM
avg. of 4 readings
 22 hr 35 min 27
Today, 9 AM
avg. of 4 readings
 21 hr 35 min 25
Today, 8 AM
avg. of 4 readings
 20 hr 35 min 23
Today, 7 AM
avg. of 4 readings
 19 hr 35 min 21
Today, 6 AM
avg. of 4 readings
 18 hr 35 min 24
Today, 5 AM
avg. of 4 readings
 17 hr 35 min 27
Today, 4 AM
avg. of 4 readings
 16 hr 31 min 30
Today, 3 AM
avg. of 4 readings
 15 hr 35 min 29
Today, 2 AM
avg. of 4 readings
 14 hr 20 min 31
Today, 1 AM
avg. of 4 readings
 12 hr 57 min 37
Today, 12 AM
avg. of 4 readings
 12 hr 12 min 34
Yesterday, 11 PM
avg. of 4 readings
 11 hr 35 min 37
Yesterday, 10 PM
avg. of 4 readings
 10 hr 35 min 36
Yesterday, 9 PM
avg. of 4 readings
 9 hr 35 min 44
Yesterday, 8 PM
avg. of 4 readings
 8 hr 35 min 44
Yesterday, 7 PM
avg. of 4 readings
 7 hr 35 min 39
Yesterday, 6 PM
avg. of 4 readings
 6 hr 35 min 42
Yesterday, 5 PM
avg. of 4 readings
 5 hr 36 min 43
Yesterday, 4 PM
avg. of 4 readings
 5 hr 20 min 39
Yesterday, 3 PM
avg. of 4 readings
 5 hr 3 min 36
Yesterday, 2 PM
avg. of 4 readings
 4 hr 18 min 36
Yesterday, 1 PM
avg. of 4 readings
 3 hr 45 min 37
Departments & services
  • Accident and emergency (A&E)
  • Advice and support services
  • Allergy services in hospital
  • Bariatric surgery
  • Breast cancer services
  • Breast Surgery
  • Cardiac services (community)
  • Cardiology
  • Cardiothoracic surgery
  • Cataract Surgery
  • Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease
  • Colorectal cancer services
  • Critical care
  • Dementia Services
  • Dermatology
  • Diabetic Medicine
  • Diagnostic Endoscopy
  • Diagnostic Imaging
  • Diagnostic Physiological Measurement
  • Ear, Nose & Throat
  • Emergency Abdominal Surgery
  • Endocrine and thyroid surgery
  • Endocrinology and Metabolic Medicine
  • Eye - accident and emergency services
  • Gastrointestinal and Liver services
  • General Medicine
  • Geriatric Medicine
  • Gynaecology
  • Haematology
  • Immunology
  • Infectious Diseases
  • Inpatient Diabetes
  • Intensive Care
  • Interventional Radiology
  • Lung cancer services
  • Major trauma
  • Maternity services
  • Neonatal Care
  • Nephrology
  • Neurology
  • Neurosurgery
  • Obstetrics And Gynaecology
  • Oesophago-Gastric cancer surgery
  • Oncology - Medical
  • Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery
  • Orthopaedics
  • Paediatric Surgery
  • Pain Management
  • Plastic surgery
  • Podiatry
  • Prostate Cancer Service
  • Rheumatology
  • Sleep Medicine
  • Stroke
  • Urgent Treatment Centre
  • Urology
  • Vascular surgery
What’s available here
Accessibility
Braille Translation ServiceDisabled ParkingDisabled WcInduction LoopSigning Service AvailableWheelchair Access
Accommodation
Access To TvInternet AccessMobile Phones PermittedPublic Telephone
Counselling and support
Translation Services
Food and amenities
CafePatient LibraryPharmacyShop
Parking
Car ParkingCycle ParkingDisabled Parking
Recent visitor feedbackreported by visitors
Overall
Not recommended by visitors
Staff
Staff are friendly and helpful
Not always kept informed about wait times
Triage can be slow
Environment
Waiting area could be cleaner
Toilets could be cleaner
Waiting area feels safe
Facilities
Seating can be limited
No TV in the waiting area
No food or drink available nearby
No phone charging points
Mobile signal is good
Parking
Parking often requires parking elsewhere
Based on 1 visitor response in the last 6 months. This information is collected through a short anonymous survey shown to visitors on this page.

About Derriford Hospital

Derriford Hospital runs a 24-hour accident and emergency department, open to all ages, on Derriford Road in Plymouth, Devon, part of University Hospitals Plymouth NHS Trust. It is also a designated Major Trauma Centre - the tier of hospital equipped for life-threatening injuries and complex emergency surgery, which is why ambulances will sometimes drive past closer A&Es to bring the most severely injured patients here. The wider site runs 57 listed departments and services, from Advice and support services to Vascular surgery.

The Care Quality Commission rates it Requires Improvement. Over the past 28 days, waits here have typically been shortest around 1pm and longest around 7am, a gap of about 5 hours 50 minutes. The site lists 2,199 parking spaces, 115 of them designated disabled bays, with patient parking averaging £1.20 an hour.

Official NHS performance

36.2%seen within 4 hours
9,089attendances in September 2026
60.4%England average for major A&Es

NHS England publishes these figures for University Hospitals Plymouth NHS Trust as a whole, covering every A&E the trust runs rather than this site alone. That is below the England average of 60.4% for major A&E departments over the same month.

In the NHS Friends and Family Test for June 2026, 64% of 874 patients who responded at this site reported a positive experience. The trust's general and acute wards averaged 90.9% overnight bed occupancy in the quarter to March 2026 - full wards are the main reason admitted patients queue in A&E.

Attendances by year

NHS yearA&E attendancesMonthly averageWithin 4 hours12hr+ waits to admit
2023-24103,8068,65047.0%6,704
2024-25108,0669,00646.3%7,138
2025-26107,5108,95945.3%6,110
2026-27 (6 months)53,8758,97936.2%2,294

Between 2023-24 and 2025-26, monthly A&E attendances rose 4% and the share seen within four hours fell by 1.6 percentage points.

Frequently asked questions

How do I check the current A&E wait time at Derriford Hospital?

The live waiting time for the A&E at Derriford Hospital is shown at the top of this page, together with when it was last updated.

When is the A&E at Derriford Hospital quietest?

Based on the last 28 days of readings at Derriford Hospital, waits are usually lowest around 1pm and highest around 7am. The typical-day chart on this page shows the full hour-by-hour pattern, and our guide to the best time to visit covers UK-wide patterns.

How long will I wait at Derriford Hospital A&E?

Patients are triaged on arrival and the most urgent cases are always seen first, so your wait depends on how serious your condition is and how busy the department is. Hospitals in England work to the NHS four-hour standard - the aim is to admit, transfer or discharge patients within four hours of arrival. The live figure on this page shows how Derriford Hospital is doing right now. NHS England's most recent figures (September 2026) show 36.2% of patients across the trust's A&E departments were seen within four hours.

How often are the waiting times on this page updated?

Figures refresh every 15 minutes, and the last-updated time near the top of the page shows exactly when the newest reading was taken. Waiting times can change quickly, so treat any figure as a guide rather than a guarantee.

Is the A&E at Derriford Hospital open 24 hours?

Yes - the A&E at Derriford Hospital is open 24 hours a day, every day of the year. In a life-threatening emergency always call 999.

Where is Derriford Hospital and how do I get there?

Derriford Hospital is at Derriford Road, Crownhill, Plymouth, Devon, PL6 8DH. For general enquiries call 01752 202082. Enter your postcode in the Getting here section for a door-to-door route.

Is parking free at Derriford Hospital?

No - patient and visitor parking here averages about £1.20 an hour (NHS estates return, 2024-25). The site lists 2,199 parking spaces, including 115 designated disabled bays. Concessions often apply for blue badge holders, frequent attenders and some patients - check the hospital's own parking page.

What is the CQC rating for Derriford Hospital?

Derriford Hospital is rated Requires Improvement overall by the Care Quality Commission (CQC), the independent regulator of health and social care in England. You can read the full CQC report.

Can children be treated at Derriford Hospital A&E?

This A&E serves: All ages. If your child's age group is not treated here, the nearby section on this page lists alternatives - or call NHS 111 for urgent advice and 999 in an emergency.

Is Derriford Hospital a Major Trauma Centre?

Yes - Derriford Hospital is a designated Major Trauma Centre, equipped for the most serious emergencies including major injuries and complex surgery. The most severely injured patients in the region are taken here, sometimes bypassing closer hospitals.
Where this data comes from
Wait times shown here are sourced from publicly available information published by University Hospitals Plymouth NHS Trust. Our system automatically checks the trust’s published waiting-times page every 15 minutes and records the displayed waiting time. Data was last checked at 12:46pm on 25 Oct 2026. A full list of every source we use, and when each was last checked, is on our data sources page.
Verified sourceDirect capture from University Hospitals Plymouth NHS Trust
Independently captured screenshot of University Hospitals Plymouth NHS Trust’s public wait time page
Captured at 12:46 pm on Sunday 25 October 2026

This site is independent and has no affiliation with, or endorsement by, any NHS trust or hospital. Department labels shown (e.g. A&E, MIU, UTC) are our interpretation of the source data and may not match the hospital’s own terminology. Wait times change frequently and may not reflect the current situation, so always contact the hospital directly for the most up-to-date information. If any information is incorrect, please let us know.

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