According to new statistics, NHS productivity has grown by 2.4 per cent in the first 4 months of this financial year (April to July 2025) compared to the same period last year.

The figure is based on the output of treatments, operations and appointments. It builds on the 2.7 per cent increase between April 2024 and March 2025 and is above the long-term trend for health productivity (0.6%).

The boost has been achieved by more same-day discharges; shorter hospital stays; better use of technology; and reduced reliance on agency staff. There has also been reductions in back office staff to reinvest funds in the front line; improved staff retention; and more surgical hubs and community diagnostic centres running evening and weekend appointments.

Health and social care secretary Wes Streeting said: "This data shows our reforms are bearing fruit as the NHS continues to outperform its productivity target.

"We’ve sent in crack teams of top clinicians across the country, opened up more services at evenings and weekends, and slashed agency spending by almost a third.

"It’s leading to more patients treated and less taxpayer money wasted.

"We know there’s more to do, but these numbers show the NHS is turning a corner.

"There are people questioning whether universal healthcare is still affordable. We are showing that the NHS, free at the point of use and available to all, can survive and thrive in the modern age. With relentless focus on productivity, the NHS can be sustainable for taxpayers and deliver for patients once again."