The waiting list for children and young people’s community care has increased by 58% since 2022, with fears that a ‘forgotten generation’s life chances are being harmed’ as a result.
A briefing by Nuffield Trust found that a total of 326,000 children and young people were on the community care waiting list as of July 2025, alongside 870,000 adults, whose waiting list also increased by 23% since 2022.
Chief executive of NHS Providers, Daniel Elkeles, said the report ‘underlines’ the worries of NHS trust leaders, that a ‘forgotten generation’s life chances are being harmed due to delays accessing care’ and that more must be done to prevent ill health and enable children to live well.
The briefing, on growing waits for community care, was published as part of a joint QualityWatch programme with the Health Foundation. It revealed that over half (55%) of children and young people on the list were waiting for community paediatric services.
These services include support for developmental problems and diagnosing and managing conditions such as autism and ADHD, which the Nuffield Trust said ‘may partly explain the overall growth’ in this waiting list, as there has been a surge in demand for referrals and assessments for these conditions.
‘The community paediatric service waiting list grew by over 120,000 patients, tripling between October 2022 and July 2025. This rapid growth is partly being driven by an increase in demand for neurodevelopmental assessments,’ the briefing said.
A further 21% of children and young people on the list are waiting for speech and language therapy services, 6% physiotherapy, 6% audiology and 6% occupational therapy.
Among adults, musculoskeletal service waiting lists grew by 100,000 patients between October 2022 and July 2025.
However, the largest percentage increase in community service waiting lists was in weight management services for adults, with a 512% increase.
The briefing said: ‘Although the absolute increase was not as high as for community paediatric or musculoskeletal services, the rapid change is worth noting, as it may relate to the recent surge in demand for GLP-1 medicines like Mounjaro and Ozempic for weight loss.’
Waiting times
The research also looked at waiting times, with one in four children and young people waiting more than a year for services, and one in 15 waiting more than two years.
‘Of the patients waiting over a year for children and young people’s services, 88% are waiting for community paediatric services and 8% are waiting for speech and language services,’ the briefing said.
The research also revealed a ‘large and concerning’ variation in waiting times across the country for community services.
The provider with the highest proportion of long waits for paediatric services was the University Hospitals Dorset Foundation Trust, with over 90% of children waiting more than 18 weeks. However, seven providers reported zero waits of over 18 weeks.
Nuffield Trust fellow and author of the briefing, Jessica Morris said: ‘Children across the country are waiting far too long for the community care they desperately need. For the families affected it can feel like life is on hold while they’re stuck waiting for support.
‘To take just one example, many children on the list are in urgent need of lifechanging speech and language therapy because of difficulties with communicating or swallowing.’
She added: ‘The government’s health plans recognise the importance of community services and include laudable aims to expand them, but our analysis shows how difficult realising that goal will be when existing community services are already on their knees.’
Dr Luisa Pettigrew, senior policy fellow at The Health Foundation said: ‘This report should be a wake-up call for the government. Waiting lists for community services are a major problem, with too many people, including children, waiting far too long for vital care. If the government is serious about moving care from hospitals to the community and from sickness to prevention then addressing long waits in community care is crucial.’
Mr Elkeles, added: ‘Preventing ill health among children and young people is central to ensuring the next generation are able to live well, thrive and contribute to society and the economy.
‘We have highlighted great examples of trusts working in new and innovative ways to improve services for young people, and the lessons they have drawn.
‘These include the need for a wholesale shift at a national level which puts them at the heart of policy making.’
It comes as ICBs and wider systems are preparing for winter through vaccination campaigns and extra capacity.
