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Regulatory Information

The NHS National Oversight Framework

The NHS Oversight Framework sets out how NHS trusts and foundation trusts are automatically allocated to a segment (1 to 4) based on performance.

The new framework describes a consistent and transparent approach to assessing integrated care boards (ICBs) and NHS trusts and foundation trusts, ensuring public accountability for performance and providing a foundation for how NHS England works with systems and providers to support improvement.

This 1-year framework sets out how NHS England will assess providers and ICBs, alongside a range of agreed metrics, promoting improvement while helping us identify quickly where organisations need support.

A dashboard and downloadable file with segmentation results, supporting data, and league table comparisons are available, for more details see: NHS England » Segmentation and league tables

 

WWL's Response to First Publication - 10th September 2025.

Mary Fleming, Chief Executive Officer, Wrightington, Wigan and Leigh Teaching Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust (WWL) commented on the Trust's current position:

“We welcome the publication of the NHS Oversight Framework, which marks an important step forward in making local NHS provider performance more transparent to the public. This update provides a summary of our current position at Wrightington, Wigan and Leigh Teaching Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust (WWL), our ongoing improvement efforts, and how you can support us.

“In this first cycle, WWL is placed in segment three of the framework, ranking 92nd out of 134 Trusts. This reflects the significant operational and financial challenges we are actively addressing this year. Despite these pressures, we have made strong progress in several areas:

  • Enhanced 62-day cancer referral-to-treatment times
  • Ahead of plan to deliver the NHS standard of treating patients within 18-weeks of referral
  • Improved productivity, meaning we are seeing more patients for every pound we spend
  • Ongoing programmes to reduce waiting times for urgent and emergency care, elective operations, and diagnostics.

“Our system-wide Better Lives Programme is already showing positive early results. This initiative is improving urgent and emergency care by reducing Emergency Department waiting times, supporting timely hospital discharges, and improving ambulance handover processes. These changes are making a real difference for people in Wigan.

“Patient safety is always our highest priority, as shown by our positive hospital mortality indicators. We are committed to putting patients at the centre of our improvement plans, ensuring everyone in our community receives high-quality, compassionate healthcare now and in the future.

“We are proud of the dedication and hard work of our staff and partners, whose efforts drive these improvements. We also appreciate the valuable feedback and involvement from our patients and community members, which guide our ongoing work.

“We know there are challenges ahead, but we are determined to deliver further progress for our patients, staff, and the wider community. We value public support as we continue this journey.

“The public can support WWL in several ways:

  • If your loved one is ready to leave hospital and return home, your assistance with their discharge can help us care for those most in need of urgent hospital services.
  • We encourage everyone to use our Emergency Departments for life, limb, or sight-threatening conditions. For non-urgent health concerns, please consider using NHS 111 online or by phone, or consult your local pharmacy or GP practice for guidance.
  • If you have an upcoming appointment at one of WWL’s hospitals, we encourage you to attend as planned. If you need to reschedule, please contact the relevant department as soon as possible so we can ensure appointments are available for others.

“If you have questions, feedback, or would like to get more involved, we welcome you to reach out to us. Thank you for your ongoing support.”