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NHS Greater Manchester continues to deliver measurable improvements in care, access, and outcomes – with national rankings rising across key areas. We’re now 12th out of 42 nationally for cancer treatment times and 9th for diagnostic test turnaround, reflecting faster pathways and earlier diagnoses.
Elective care exceeded targets in April and May, and ambulance response times in June averaged just 22 minutes – well ahead of the 30-minute standard. Cardiovascular care is also leading the way, with cholesterol management and statin use outperforming regional and national averages.
Pharmacy services are expanding rapidly: 96% of GM pharmacies now offer Pharmacy First, delivering over 30,000 consultations in a month. The Pharmacy Contraception Service has grown 63% year-on-year, supporting thousands of women with accessible care.
Primary and community care integration is setting a national benchmark, and social prescribing has reached 54,000 residents – transforming lives through holistic support. We’ve also launched a bold new alcohol harm strategy and become the first ICB in England to voluntarily adopt the Socio Economic Duty, embedding fairness in every major decision.
These achievements highlight Greater Manchester’s commitment to faster, fairer, and more joined-up care – powered by prevention, innovation, and collaboration across the system.
Together, we’re building a healthier Greater Manchester.
Since July 2024, NHS GM has been working in close partnership with NHS England to deliver the Single Improvement Plan (SIP), which sets out 36 legally binding Enforcement Undertakings aimed at strengthening healthcare across the region. These actions focus on leadership and governance, financial sustainability, performance and assurance, and quality of care. As of March 2025, NHS GM had met 28 undertakings. We’re pleased to report four more have now been achieved, including:
- Leadership and Governance: Following the independent Carnall Farrar review, system-wide changes have been signed off as compliant. This was a particularly broad ranging and comprehensive undertaking that addressed all parts of our system and the achievement of this undertaking is particularly noteworthy
- Financial Planning: GM’s financial plan for 2025/26 has achieved £335m in savings, reducing the projected overspend to £200m – a much-improved position thanks to everybody’s efforts
- Quality: Providers are meeting requirements set out in NHS GM’s Quality Improvement Plan, and NHS GM is demonstrating good quality governance assurance and oversight mechanism.
The focus now shifts to the final four undertakings - delivering the 2025/26 financial plan, developing a medium-term plan for a break-even position by 2026/27, resolving historic commissioning issues, and continuing improvements in wait times. A formal review in September 2025 will assess remaining progress. Continued collaboration with NHS England remains key to delivering long-term, sustainable improvements
for GM residents.
The 2025 GP Patient Survey results, which includes information on patient experience of general practice, NHS dentistry and community pharmacy, have now been published.
The results of the survey show improvements for Greater Manchester in patients’ experience of general practice, NHS dental and community pharmacy services when compared with 2024.
Key findings include:
- 77% of patients had a good overall experience of their GP practice, an increase of 2% from 2024.
- Compared with 2024, more than 50% of patients reported they had tried contacting their general practice using their website or the NHS App.
Across all three contact methods that patients were asked about (phone, practice website, and NHS App), around 54% of patients reported they generally found it ‘easy’ to contact their general practice.
- 73% of patients had a good overall experience of NHS dental services, an increase of 1% from 2024.
- 88% of patients had a good overall experience of using pharmacy services, an increase of 2% from 2024.
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Far more children in Bury are now receiving services that are making a positive difference to their lives and helping to ensure they are safe and well cared for according to the most recent Ofsted inspection into Bury’s children’s services, published this week.
Inspectors commended the progress made within the Children and Young People’s department and acknowledged the ongoing commitment to protecting and supporting children and families, noting that most receive the right help at the right time.
The inspection also praised the remarkable progress made by the leadership team, noting that Bury’s respected, highly visible and effective senior leadership team has made significant improvements, with a comprehensive plan to drive change which in turn is supported by the whole council and partner agencies, and backed by significant investment.
Responding to the Ofsted report, council leaders praised staff and reaffirmed their commitment to further improving services for children and families.
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Trusts across Greater Manchester will soon be part of the national move to use an AI signal system to alert them to possible safety issues.
Wythenshawe Hospital, part of Manchester University NHS Foundation Trust, has been running a pilot since October last year and will be looking to roll out the maternity outcomes signal system (MOSS) across the city region by the end of this year.
The work will form part of the Government’s aim to improve maternity safety standards, which includes the Secretary of State for Health’s national investigation into maternity and neonatal services. It will make the NHS the first health system in the world to use AI to analyse hospital databases and catch potential safety risks early.
The MOSS pilot in Greater Manchester is working to track data from outcomes and alert a Trust if there is a higher than expected adverse rate. For example, this could be for stillbirth, neonatal death or brain injury.
The Trust’s board will need to respond to the alert, rapidly reviewing the data before reporting back to the Local Maternity and Neonatal System and the integrated care board.
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Tameside Hospital officially marked the opening of a new maternity theatre with a ceremony on Wednesday 23 July, following its completion earlier in the summer.
The £5.5 million theatre will help Tameside Hospital to provide the best possible care for mothers and babies in the Tameside and Glossop community.
It will add valuable operating capacity to the hospital, undertaking between 8 and 10 elective caesarean sections every week. It also provides the opportunity to locate both elective and emergency caesarean sections within the same building. This allows easier access to other services provided in the maternity unit for new parents recovering from surgery.
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Summer is a time of milestones, big decisions and looking ahead to change. Support is available for children, young people and their families. During the summer holidays, children and young people are out of their usual routines and social networks. Whether they are waiting for exam results, moving up a year at school, changing schools, starting college, or heading off to university, this summer will be the start of change for many families across Greater Manchester. While results and transitions can be nerve-wracking, they can also mean growth, confidence-building, and resilience. With the right support, children and young people can move forward feeling secure, motivated, and ready to face new challenges.
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Labour MP and Minister of State for Care in England Stephen Kinnock visited Borsdane Avenue community pharmacy in Wigan on Tuesday 15 July.
His visit was tied in with the Governments announcement to free up Pharmacists time so they can treat patients more. Whilst visiting the pharmacy in Wigan he discussed the Pharmacy First service provision, the importance of good relationships between community pharmacy and general practice and the expanding role of pharmacy technicians in community pharmacy.
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A new café has opened at Birch Hill Hospital to raise money to help people’s mental health.
Café Connect, located in the John Elliot Unit of the hospital site in Wardle, Rochdale will support Pennine Care Charity, part of Pennine Care NHS Foundation Trust.
Profits raised will help fund important work and services for local communities, patients and staff, that are in addition to those paid for by the NHS – such as supporting community-based groups, staff development projects, or enhancing the therapeutic environments that are used by patients and their families.
It will also offer volunteer opportunities for current and former patients, as well as members of the local community to gain valuable experience, build confidence, and develop key skills.
Paul Waugh, MP for Rochdale, joined Evelyn Asante-Mensah, Pennine Care chair, and other colleagues to official launch Café Connect on Friday 25 July 2025.
Paul Waugh MP said: "It was a real honour to attend the opening of Cafe Connect at Birch Hill, and to see firsthand how it will encourage better wellbeing for patients, visitors, volunteers and NHS staff.
To express interest in volunteering at Café Connect or other Pennine Care NHS services, contact volunteering.penninecare@nhs.net or call 0161 716 3365 to speak to a member of the volunteering team.
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Measles cases continue to rise
The number of people catching measles is rising in Greater Manchester. Measles is a very infectious disease – just a cough or sneeze can spread the virus to other people. It spreads easily and quickly among those who are not vaccinated, especially in nurseries and schools. Monthly data published earlier this month by the UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA) showed that 64 cases of measles have been reported in the north west of England since January 2025. Data also shows that Salford recorded the fourth highest number of measles cases in the UK across this period. This report was closely followed by the news that a child with measles has sadly died at Alder Hey children’s hospital. Therefore please continue to urge patients to protect their children by ensuring they have had all recommended vaccinations. Parents can check this information in their child’s red book. Please ensure that you are facilitating conversations around vaccinations where relevant and using the resources to socialise important messages around measles, the signs and symptoms and the MMR vaccination. These resources are available to download from our campaigns resource centre.
Greater Manchester Boroughs Salford and Manchester are set to benefit from a £1 million funding boost to help ensure a greener future and improve the area for its residents.
Together they are amongst 40 towns and cities across the country receiving an investment of £15m from the National Lottery Heritage Fund as part of a new mission announced on Friday 18 July.
The mission is set to particularly focus on those places and communities currently lacking access to quality green space to make them a Nature Town or City.
From the received £1 million funding, Salford and Manchester are planning to work together to create an interconnected network of green and blue spaces—linking parks, urban waterways, and industrial heritage sites.
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Greater Manchester Health and Care Champion Awards 2025 – Winners announced
The winners of the Greater Manchester Health and Care Champion Awards 2025 were celebrated in style on Thursday 10 July as the finalists came together to celebrate their achievements.
Almost 700 individuals and teams were nominated across 14 categories, including Community Champion, Volunteer Champion and the newly introduced Green Initiative of the Year. Finalists gathered at Manchester’s Science and Industry Museum for a sponsored ceremony hosted by former Blue Peter presenter Mwaksy Mudenda, and Mark Fisher, chief exec at NHS Greater Manchester, where the winners were revealed.
Throughout the evening, powerful and inspiring stories were shared, showcasing the strength, compassion and unwavering dedication of those working across health, social care, and community services, both employed and unpaid. The evening concluded with the prestigious Lifetime Achievement Award.
See the full list of winners here
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GM Mental Health NHS wins international award for anti-racism efforts
Greater Manchester Mental Health NHS Foundation Trust (GMMH) has been awarded the prestigious Johnathan MacLennan Award at the international Mental Health Improvement Network Annual Conference 2025, in Utrecht, Netherlands. The award was given for the Trust’s outstanding Race Ethnicity and Cultural Heritage (REACH) Community of Practice Quality Improvement project.
Read more here.
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National recognition for Director of Nursing and Midwifery
Kathy Murphy, Director of Nursing and Midwifery at Manchester University NHS Foundation Trust, was awarded an OBE by King Charles in his birthday honours list for her services to midwifery leadership. With more than 40 years’ experience in the NHS, she has brought together the largest maternity service in the UK, employing 820 midwives and supporting the births of 16,500 babies each year.
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Stockport’s rising star in nursing
A Stockport student nursing associate has been recognised for her early contributions to the NHS and her work to improve local mental health services.
Phoebe Hall, 21, from Brinnington, Stockport was awarded ‘Student Nursing Associate of the Year’ at the acclaimed Student Nursing Times Awards 2025 back in June.
Now newly qualified and working as a nursing associate for Pennine Care NHS Foundation Trust, a mental health, learning disability and autism NHS trust in Greater Manchester, Phoebe has shared more about her journey into nursing and her inspiring goals for the future.
Read more here
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World Breastfeeding Week is celebrated annually from Friday 1 August to Thursday 7 August. This global campaign, organised by the World Alliance for Breastfeeding Action (WABA), is aimed at raising awareness about the benefits of breastfeeding for both infants and mothers, while also highlighting the importance of support for breastfeeding mothers.
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NHS Greater Manchester backs blood donation
During National Blood Week, NHS GM Chief Executive Mark Fisher visited the Plymouth Grove Donor Centre to explore how organisations that are part of the Integrated Care Partnership (ICP) can better support blood donation efforts. Following the visit, the NHS Blood and Transplant (NHSBT) team were invited to host a “What’s Your Blood Type?” event at NHS GM central office, giving staff the opportunity to learn their blood type and register as blood donors. An incredible 24 people signed up during the event.
Summer is a particularly challenging time for maintaining blood stocks, and NHSBT has recently issued appeals for NHS organisations to help recruit more donors. Manchester ICP’s leadership is setting a strong example by taking practical steps to raise awareness and encourage more health and care organisations across Greater Manchester to get involved.
Potential donors can register to donate and book appointments at one of the region’s permanent donor centres in Manchester, Bolton or Stockport.
Register or book: www.blood.co.uk
Partnership enquiries: partnerships@nhsbt.nhs.uk
If you are able to support by becoming a partner, please contact the NHS Blood and Transplant Partnerships Team.
Have your say on the proposed NHS dental contract changes
The Department for Health and Social Care (DHSC) has opened a consultation on proposed changes to the NHS dental contract.
The NHS dental contract quality and payment reforms 2026 represent a significant and essential step on the journey to improve access to and quality of NHS dentistry.
Developed following engagement with the profession, the proposed changes aim to improve access for those requiring urgent care, enhance treatment pathways for complex cases, and deliver better preventative care for children.
This includes shifting away from the unit of dental activity (UDA) system towards a more balanced approach prioritising patient needs and professional fulfilment as well as creating fairer funding for complex treatments, and developing new clinical pathways that integrate prevention and treatment. These changes should also help practices use the full dental team effectively while focusing resources where they're most needed.
The consultation is open for six weeks and will close at 11.59pm on Tuesday 19 August 2025. Staff working in NHS dentistry, commissioners, patients and organisations with experience in the dental sector are encouraged to submit their feedback on the proposals.
Any queries on the consultation can be directed to dentistrycontract2026@dhsc.gov.uk
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