A&E Trauma Unit

Northampton General Hospital (Acute) A&E Waiting Times

Northampton General Hospital NHS Trust

Latest report
16 hr 25 min
24 Sep 15:46
Average
7 hr 21 min
4 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.
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0 minutes total
Community reported wait times

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

Nearby A&E & urgent care
Milton Keynes Children's A&E
15.8 mi away
Long wait
Milton Keynes Hospital A&E
15.8 mi away
Long wait
Rugby Urgent Treatment Centre
18.2 mi away
Long wait
University Hospital Coventry A&E
26.7 mi away
Long wait
University Hospital Coventry Children's A&E
26.7 mi away
Long wait

There are also other nearby A&Es which collect wait times from the community, including Kettering General Hospital, Bedford Hospital South Wing and Horton General Hospital.

Contact & location
Cliftonville, Northampton, Northamptonshire, NN1 5BD
Switchboard: 01604 634700
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
Northampton Rail Station20 min walk to A&E
Bus stops
9 routes·3 operators·5 stops within walking distance
NGH A & E (Stop A, westbound)2 min walk to A&E
12StagecoachNorthampton
4StagecoachSunnyside ↔ Northampton
51StagecoachBrackmills ↔ Rectory Farm
87StagecoachTowcester ↔ Northampton
9BStagecoachDuston ↔ Northampton
VH1Cogenhoe and Whiston Parish CouncilWollaston ↔ Weston Favell Centre
NGH A & E (Stop B, eastbound)2 min walk to A&E
12AStagecoachNorthampton
51StagecoachWeston Favell Centre ↔ Brackmills
General Hospital (Stop C, westbound)3 min walk to A&E
12StagecoachNorthampton
4StagecoachNorthampton ↔ Sunnyside
5StagecoachSouthfields ↔ Northampton
51StagecoachBrackmills ↔ Rectory Farm
80PCommMiniBusMawsley ↔ Northampton
87StagecoachNorthampton ↔ Towcester
9BStagecoachNorthampton ↔ Duston
VH1Cogenhoe and Whiston Parish CouncilWollaston ↔ Weston Favell Centre
General Hospital (Stop D, eastbound)3 min walk to A&E
5StagecoachNorthampton ↔ Southfields
80PCommMiniBusNorthampton ↔ Mawsley
Alfred Street (opp, westbound)4 min walk to A&E
5StagecoachSouthfields ↔ Northampton
80PCommMiniBusMawsley ↔ Northampton
Plan journey by public transport

About Northampton General Hospital (Acute)

Northampton General Hospital (Acute) runs a 24-hour accident and emergency department, open to under 17 years, on Cliftonville in Northampton, Northamptonshire, part of Northampton General Hospital NHS Trust. It is a designated Trauma Unit, equipped to treat significant injuries and to stabilise the most serious cases before transfer to a regional Major Trauma Centre. The wider site runs 46 listed departments and services, from Breast cancer services to Vascular surgery.

The Care Quality Commission rates it Requires Improvement. The site lists 2,004 parking spaces, 83 of them designated disabled bays, with patient parking averaging £1.10 an hour.

Official NHS performance

55.6%seen within 4 hours
9,611attendances in September 2026
60.4%England average for major A&Es

NHS England publishes these figures for Northampton General Hospital 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 August 2026, 76% of 1,112 patients who responded at this site reported a positive experience. The trust's general and acute wards averaged 90.2% 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
2023-24108,4629,03855.8%9,960
2024-25117,9079,82662.8%9,291
2025-26125,49810,45859.6%8,672
2026-27 (6 months)65,50710,91864.0%5,169

Between 2023-24 and 2025-26, monthly A&E attendances rose 16% and the share seen within four hours improved by 3.8 percentage points.

Frequently asked questions

How do I check the current A&E wait time at Northampton General Hospital (Acute)?

The live waiting time for the A&E at Northampton General Hospital (Acute) 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 Northampton General Hospital (Acute) 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 Northampton General Hospital (Acute) 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 Northampton General Hospital (Acute) is doing right now. NHS England's most recent figures (September 2026) show 55.6% 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 Northampton General Hospital (Acute) recently, submitting your wait takes a few seconds and helps others plan.

Is the A&E at Northampton General Hospital (Acute) open 24 hours?

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

Where is Northampton General Hospital (Acute) and how do I get there?

Northampton General Hospital (Acute) is at Cliftonville, Northampton, Northamptonshire, NN1 5BD. For general enquiries call 01604 634700. Enter your postcode in the Getting here section for a door-to-door route.

Is parking free at Northampton General Hospital (Acute)?

No - patient and visitor parking here averages about £1.10 an hour (NHS estates return, 2024-25). The site lists 2,004 parking spaces, including 83 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 Northampton General Hospital (Acute)?

Northampton General Hospital (Acute) 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 Northampton General Hospital (Acute) A&E?

This A&E serves: Under 17 years. 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 Northampton General Hospital (Acute) a Major Trauma Centre?

No - Northampton General Hospital (Acute) is a designated Trauma Unit. It treats significant injuries and stabilises the most complex cases before transfer to a regional Major Trauma Centre.
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.
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