Families in Northampton, Northamptonshire, wait an average of seven weeks for their children to have their first specialist paediatric outpatient appointment at Northampton General Hospital, according to data updated in February 2026 on the NHS ‘My Planned Care’ website.
Once a child has been seen for the first time at Northampton General Hospital, the average time to begin treatment is reported as six weeks. That six-week figure is well below the NHS referral-to-treatment (RTT) standard of 18 weeks. If the average seven-week wait for a first appointment and the average six-week time-to-treatment are summed, the combined average would be about 13 weeks from referral to the start of treatment, which remains inside the 18-week RTT target.
Northampton General Hospital is part of the University Hospitals of Northamptonshire NHS Group (UHN), which brings together Northampton and Kettering hospitals to coordinate services across the county.
The Care Quality Commission (CQC) regularly inspects and monitors the Trust; NGH’s provider profile is on the CQC website (provider ID: RNS). Local health officials and patient advocates advise parents to watch for any deterioration in a child’s condition while they wait for appointments. If a child’s symptoms worsen, parents are advised to contact their GP or call NHS 111 rather than waiting for a scheduled outpatient slot.
The published figures on My Planned Care are intended to help families and local clinicians plan for non-urgent care with greater certainty. Northampton General continues to prioritise emergency cases and urgent referrals to ensure the most serious conditions are treated immediately.
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