One year after the Royal College of Nursing published its landmark report exposing the scale of corridor care across the UK, RCN Wales is warning that patients and nursing staff in Wales continue to be put at risk by this dangerous practice.
New UK-wide polling of 2,150 adults by YouGov, including respondents in Wales, shows that corridor care remains widespread. Nearly two in ten UK adults (18%) say they have witnessed NHS care being delivered in non-medical spaces such as corridors in the last six months. In Wales, the figure rises to more than one in four (28%).
Further RCN analysis reveals an even more alarming picture for Wales. When looking only at those who accessed NHS care in Wales for themselves or a loved one, more than half (58%) say they experienced or witnessed care delivered in a corridor or other inappropriate setting.
These findings echo what nursing staff in Wales have been reporting for years. In 2025, RCN Wales surveyed its members working in NHS Wales hospitals. Almost two thirds (61.8%) said corridor care was a problem where they work, highlighting a serious and ongoing threat to patient safety, dignity and outcomes.
One nurse working on an NHS mental health ward in Wales described corridor care as a “regular occurrence”, warning that staff are forced to provide care in unsafe environments that increase the risk of self-harm and suicide due to unsecured fittings and objects in corridors.
A frontline nurse responding to the RCN survey said: “Emergency departments are no longer able to function and we are causing harm to patients. Corridor care must stop.”
RCN Wales says the practice has become normalised, leaving nursing staff distressed, demoralised and unable to deliver the standard of care patients deserve.
RCN Wales Associate Director of Nursing (Employment Relations) Nicky Hughes said: “Corridor care is not an inevitable consequence of winter pressures or staff shortages – it’s a symptom of a system that has been allowed to drift into crisis. Our members told us clearly last year that corridor care had become widespread and entrenched in NHS Wales, and the latest UK-wide polling shows that nothing has improved.”
“Nursing staff are doing everything they can, but they cannot deliver safe and dignified care in corridors, waiting rooms or storage spaces. Patients deserve better, and so do the professionals who care for them.”
“Over the past year, RCN Wales has led the way in exposing the reality of corridor care and demanding action. We’ve set out the solutions, built alliances and ensured this issue cannot be ignored. Now we need the Welsh government and NHS Wales to act with urgency and transparency to end corridor care in Wales once and for all.”
“The RCN is reiterating its call for a fully funded and credible plan to eliminate corridor care, including urgent investment in inpatient beds, the nursing workforce, community services and social care, to prevent patients being left without safe and appropriate treatment.”
ENDS
Notes to editors
YouGov polling: The RCN received testimony from 436 NHS nursing staff across the UK. This was a selection of nursing staff from the 5,841 who had contributed to last year’s major report.
They were asked:
• if they were still having to provide care in inappropriate spaces one year on
• where they had had to deliver care
• how it affected them
• in their opinion, how it affected the person they were caring for
All figures, unless otherwise stated, are from YouGov Plc. This was a UK-wide survey and the total sample size was 2,150 UK adults, of which 1,806 were in England, 171 were in Scotland, and 125 were in Wales. Fieldwork was undertaken between 4 - 5 January 2026. The survey was carried out online. The figures have been weighted and are representative of all UK adults (aged 18+).
Useful links:
• Ending corridor care in Wales – RCN Wales briefing for MSs
• Stronger nursing, Stronger Nation
• Read open letters from RCN Wales
• Our member survey report: download in Welsh and English
The Royal College of Nursing (RCN) is the voice of nursing across the UK, including around 35,000 members in Wales. The RCN promotes the interests of nursing and patients on a wide range of issues and helps shape health care policy.
For more information, contact the RCN Wales communications and media team on 02920 680 769 or mediawales@rcn.org.uk
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View all press releases at rcn.org.uk/wales/Wales-News/Press
