The British public's satisfaction with the National Health Service has reached a historic low, according to the latest British Social Attitudes survey published by the Nuffield Trust and The King’s Fund.
Only 21% of people expressed satisfaction with the NHS in 2024, a dramatic decline of 39 percentage points since the pre-pandemic months.
The survey, conducted by the National Centre for Social Research (NatCen), reveals several concerning trends, these include the fact that 59% of respondents were ‘very’ or ‘quite’ dissatisfied with the NHS, up from 52% in 2023, marking the highest level of dissatisfaction since the survey began in 1983. In terms of waiting times, satisfaction stands at just 12%, and GP waiting times at 23%, highlighting widespread frustration.
Dan Wellings, Senior Fellow at The King’s Fund, commented:
“The latest results lay bare the extent of the problems faced by the NHS and the size of the challenge for the government. While the results are sobering, they should not be surprising. For too many people the NHS has become difficult to access: how can you be satisfied with a service you can’t get into?
“In 2010, seven out of ten people were satisfied with the NHS – it is now down to only one in five. The scale of the decline over the past few years has been dramatic. The results show that people do not want a different funding model, but they do want the NHS to start working for them again and they want it to have the staff and the money it needs to ensure that happens. The public are also clear that the NHS needs to get better at spending the money it does get more efficiently.
“The government’s focus on bringing down hospital waiting lists may address one area of the public’s concerns, but this year’s BSA survey shows that all areas are flashing red, particularly A&E. Voters are impatient for change, and ministers will need to demonstrate rapid improvement, but that should not come at the cost of the bigger, whole-system reforms that are needed to create a truly sustainable health service. These results will form the baseline from which the new Labour government’s reform plans to ‘fix’ the NHS will be judged.”
Only 11% of respondents believe there are enough staff in the NHS, and 69% think the government spends too little on the health service. However, only 14% feel the NHS spends its money efficiently.
As well as this 46% of the public would prefer increasing taxes to raise NHS spending, while 41% favour keeping taxes the same. Despite low satisfaction, there is strong support for the NHS's founding principles, with 90% agreeing it should be free at the point of use, 77% saying it should be available to everyone, and 80% supporting funding through general taxation.
Generational and regional disparities have also been highlighted through the survey, with satisfaction being lower among younger age groups, with a significant drop from 24% to 19% among those under 65, while satisfaction slightly increased among those aged 65+. Dissatisfaction is highest in Wales (72%), compared to 59% in England and 60% in Scotland.
Specific Service Satisfaction:
- A&E Services: Satisfaction with A&E services has plummeted from 31% to 19%, with dissatisfaction rising to 52%.
- GP Services: Satisfaction with GP services continues to decline, now at 31%.
- NHS Dentistry: Satisfaction with NHS dentistry has collapsed to a record low of 20%, with 55% expressing dissatisfaction.
- Hospital Care: Inpatient and outpatient hospital care remains the most satisfactory part of the NHS, with 32% satisfied.
- Social Care: Satisfaction with social care is worryingly low at 13%, with 53% dissatisfied.
For the first time, the survey includes supporters of the Reform party as a separate category, revealing lower satisfaction with the NHS (13%) compared to other main parties. This comprehensive survey underscores the urgent need for improvements in the NHS to address public dissatisfaction and enhance healthcare services.
In response to the survey, NHS Confederation Policy Director Dr Layla McCay said:
“While these findings will be a blow to those working in the NHS, unfortunately they are of little surprise given the survey was conducted at time when the new government was communicating how “broken” the NHS was and when waiting lists were so high. There have been improvements since this time including to how patients access GP appointments and to the backlog of elective procedures coming down for five consecutive months.
“However, many staff recognise that despite everything they are doing, the standard of care they are providing can sometimes fall short of what they would like to provide for their patients. Both patients and staff can clearly see the impact that more than a decade of being starved of capital funding has had on the health service, including dilapidated buildings and outdated equipment.
“The government has been clear that improving the NHS is a key priority and there is hope for the future with the 10 Year Plan, but delivering this transformation will take time. There is no quick fix given the scale of demand for services, the need for local services to deliver eye-watering efficiency savings which will require some cuts to services and the latest developments that will require ICSs and trusts to reduce their running costs. Local services are facing major upheaval as they continue to try to improve performance.
“While it will be important for health leaders to take note of these findings, this should be done alongside reviewing feedback from their own patients and wider local communities who have direct experience of interacting with their services.”
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