PATIENTS were waiting an average of six weeks for routine treatment at Lancashire and South Cumbria Trust in February, figures show.

The King's Fund think tank said another national record for the number of people on hospital waiting lists shows the strain on the NHS is reaching “unacceptable levels”.

NHS England figures show the median waiting time for non-urgent elective operations or treatment at Lancashire and South Cumbria NHS Foundation Trust was six weeks at the end of February – down from eight weeks in January.

However, this was more than the average three-week wait a year previously.

There were 3,302 patients on the waiting list in February – down from 3,811 in January, but an increase on 1,648 in February 2021.

None of those had been waiting for longer than one year.

Nationally, 6.2 million people were waiting to start treatment at the end of February.

This is up from 6.1 million in January and the highest number since records began in August 2007.

But the figures also show that while the overall waiting list has continued to grow, the number of people waiting more than a year and two years have both fallen.

Danielle Jefferies, analyst at The King’s Fund, said the latest national figures show pressures are now reaching “unacceptable levels” in all parts of the health and care system.

She added: “A&E departments remain full of patients in need of urgent care, and separate data shows a similar story in general practice and social care.

“In March, 22,500 people waited over 12 hours to be admitted to hospital from A&E – a more than thirty-fold increase compared to a year ago."

Separate figures show 1.5 million patients in England were waiting for a key diagnostic test in February – the same as in January.

At Lancashire and South Cumbria Trust, 238 patients were waiting for one of three standard tests, such as an MRI scan or non-obstetric ultrasound at this time.

Of them, 60 (25 per cent) had been waiting for at least six weeks.