A&E Major Trauma Centre

King's College Hospital (London) A&E Waiting Times

King's College Hospital NHS Foundation Trust

Latest report
7 hr
09 Oct 22:47
Average
8 hr 14 min
10 reports
Reported by visitors, not the hospital. Waits shown here are typical for non-urgent cases. Patients are seen in order of clinical priority, so the most seriously ill are always seen first no matter how busy the department is.
Report a wait time

Share your experience to help keep this data accurate.

0 minutes total
Community reported wait times

These times are reported by visitors and may not reflect current conditions.

Nearby A&E & urgent care
Princess Alexandra Hospital Children's A&E
22.3 mi away
Long wait
Princess Alexandra Hospital A&E
22.3 mi away
Long wait
Princess Alexandra Hospital Same Day Emergency Care A&E
22.3 mi away
Long wait
Sittingbourne MIU
36.9 mi away
Long wait
Sheppey MIU
38.3 mi away
Long wait

There are also other nearby A&Es which collect wait times from the community, including St Thomas', University Hospital Lewisham and Royal London Hospital.

Contact & location
Denmark Hill, London, SE5 9RS
Switchboard: 020 3299 9000
Opening times
Monday TodayOpen 24 hours
TuesdayOpen 24 hours
WednesdayOpen 24 hours
ThursdayOpen 24 hours
FridayOpen 24 hours
SaturdayOpen 24 hours
SundayOpen 24 hours
Getting here
Train stations
Denmark Hill Station3 min walk to A&E
Loughborough Junction Station10 min walk to A&E
East Dulwich Station15 min walk to A&E
Brixton Rail Station20 min walk to A&E
Peckham Rye Station20 min walk to A&E
Metro / tram
Brixton Underground Station22 min walk to A&E
Oval Underground Station26 min walk to A&E
Stockwell Underground Station27 min walk to A&E
Kennington Underground Station30 min walk to A&E
Clapham North Underground Station33 min walk to A&E
Bus stops
9 routes·4 operators·5 stops within walking distance
King's College Hospital (Stop B, southbound)1 min walk to A&E
176Go-AheadTottenham Court Road ↔ Penge & Sydenham
185Go-AheadVictoria ↔ Lewisham
40Go-AheadClerkenwell ↔ Dulwich Village
484Go-AheadCamberwell ↔ Lewisham
King's College Hospital (Stop A, southbound)1 min walk to A&E
42Go-AheadSpitalfields ↔ East Dulwich
468Arriva UK BusElephant & Castle ↔ South Croydon
68Abellio LondonEuston ↔ West Norwood
N68Abellio LondonTottenham Court Road ↔ Old Coulsdon
King's College Hospital (Stop R, northbound)2 min walk to A&E
176Go-AheadPenge & Sydenham ↔ Tottenham Court Road
185Go-AheadLewisham ↔ Victoria
40Go-AheadDulwich Village ↔ Clerkenwell
42Go-AheadEast Dulwich ↔ Shoreditch
468Arriva UK BusSouth Croydon ↔ Elephant & Castle
484Go-AheadLewisham ↔ Camberwell
68Abellio LondonWest Norwood ↔ Euston
N68Abellio LondonOld Coulsdon ↔ Tottenham Court Road
Denmark Hill Station (Stop J, westbound)3 min walk to A&E
176Go-AheadPenge & Sydenham ↔ Tottenham Court Road
185Go-AheadLewisham ↔ Victoria
40Go-AheadDulwich Village ↔ Clerkenwell
484Go-AheadLewisham ↔ Camberwell
MReplacement ServiceCanada Water ↔ Clapham Junction
Champion Hill (Stop Q, northbound)3 min walk to A&E
42Go-AheadEast Dulwich ↔ Shoreditch
468Arriva UK BusSouth Croydon ↔ Elephant & Castle
68Abellio LondonWest Norwood ↔ Euston
N68Abellio LondonOld Coulsdon ↔ Tottenham Court Road
Plan journey by public transport
What’s available here
Accessibility
Braille Translation ServiceDisabled ParkingDisabled WcInduction LoopSigning Service AvailableText RelayWheelchair Access
Accommodation
Access To TvInternet AccessMobile Phones PermittedPublic TelephoneSingle Sex Accommodation Only
Parking
Car ParkingCycle ParkingDisabled Parking
Food and Amenities
CafePatient LibraryPharmacyShop

About King's College Hospital

King's College Hospital runs a 24-hour accident and emergency department, open to all ages, on Denmark Hill in London, Greater London, part of King's College Hospital NHS Foundation 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 56 listed departments and services, from Allergy services in hospital to Vascular surgery.

The Care Quality Commission rates it Requires Improvement, last inspected in August 2022. It rated the hospital's urgent and emergency services Requires Improvement when they were last inspected in February 2020. The site lists 239 parking spaces, 28 of them designated disabled bays, and patient and visitor parking is free.

Official NHS performance

51.7%seen within 4 hours
16,197attendances in September 2026
60.4%England average for major A&Es

NHS England publishes these figures for King's College Hospital NHS Foundation 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 August 2026, 58% of 339 patients who responded at this site reported a positive experience. The trust's general and acute wards averaged 90.8% 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
2023-24177,84814,82149.4%7,987
2024-25184,65615,38855.8%10,156
2025-26186,67815,55656.8%8,904
2026-27 (6 months)93,91115,65255.1%4,227

Between 2023-24 and 2025-26, monthly A&E attendances rose 5% and the share seen within four hours improved by 7.4 percentage points.

Frequently asked questions

How do I check the current A&E wait time at King's College Hospital?

The live waiting time for the A&E at King's College Hospital is shown at the top of this page, together with when it was last updated. Times are reported by recent visitors and carry a community badge - after your own visit you can submit your wait time in a few seconds to help the next person.

When is the A&E at King's College Hospital quietest?

Patterns vary by hospital, but across UK urgent and emergency care the quietest window is usually the early morning, roughly 4am to 7am, with demand building through the afternoon and peaking in the evening. Friday and Saturday nights and Monday mornings are typically the busiest periods. See our guide to the best time to visit for more detail.

How long will I wait at King's College 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 King's College Hospital is doing right now. NHS England's most recent figures (September 2026) show 51.7% of patients across the trust's A&E departments were seen within four hours.

How often are the waiting times on this page updated?

This page updates whenever a visitor submits a new wait time, so freshness depends on recent reports - each entry shows when that person visited. If you have been to King's College Hospital recently, submitting your wait takes a few seconds and helps others plan.

Is the A&E at King's College Hospital open 24 hours?

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

Where is King's College Hospital and how do I get there?

King's College Hospital is at Denmark Hill, London, SE5 9RS. For general enquiries call 020 3299 9000. Enter your postcode in the Getting here section for a door-to-door route.

Is parking free at King's College Hospital?

Yes - the trust lists patient and visitor parking at this site as free (NHS estates return, 2024-25). There are 239 parking spaces, including 28 designated disabled bays.

What is the CQC rating for King's College Hospital?

King's College Hospital is rated Requires Improvement overall by the Care Quality Commission (CQC), the independent regulator of health and social care in England, following an inspection in August 2022. It rated the hospital's urgent and emergency services Requires Improvement when they were last inspected in February 2020. You can read the full CQC report.

Can children be treated at King's College 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 King's College Hospital a Major Trauma Centre?

Yes - King's College 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.
About this data
This hospital does not currently have a live data source. The waiting times shown here are reported by visitors and may not reflect current conditions. You can see how we source data for every hospital on our data sources page. 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. If any information is incorrect, please let us know.
Directions