The Cambridgeshire County Council Health Scrutiny Committee will meet on March 24, 2026, to examine long waiting lists for autism diagnostic assessments and the growing struggle to book GP appointments in Peterborough. The review aims to find practical solutions to help families who are facing significant delays in getting medical help.
Families in the region have faced waits of up to three years in some services, and national data from the National Autistic Society (November 2025) shows the average waiting time for an autism assessment was over 16 months with more than 227,000 people with open referrals. A new neurodevelopmental referral pathway was introduced on 1 April 2025 to simplify the process, but local and national figures indicate the backlog remains a major problem.
The council will also address concerns about GP practices moving to digital-first or online-only booking systems that can be difficult for some patients to use. Healthwatch Peterborough warned in October 2025 that these systems are creating a digital divide, making it harder for older and more vulnerable residents to see their doctor.
Recent checks by regulators have raised flags about safety and management at some local clinics: a surgery near Peterborough received a Care Quality Commission Warning Notice in October 2025 and was later rated ‘Requires Improvement’ in a report published in December 2025. Committee members plan to use the March review to press the Integrated Care Board and local NHS providers for improvements and to ensure services are more accessible for everyone.
About this article: This story was put together with the help of AI tools and checked by a real person on our team. We're a small crew trying to cover as much of the UK as we can on a limited budget. We're getting better every day - but we're not perfect yet. If something looks off, let us know. You're part of the process.
