A few weeks ago, I met a woman in Tunstall who had been waiting months for a hospital appointment. She was not angry with the doctors or nurses — she knew they were doing their best. What had worn her down was the waiting. The sense that she had simply been added to a list and forgotten.
Earlier this month, she finally received a call. Her appointment had been brought forward. She was seen at Royal Stoke, given a treatment plan, and left with some certainty about what would happen next.
When she told me, the relief in her voice was unmistakable. Not jubilation, just relief. The kind that comes when something that should have worked all along finally does.
That is what progress in the NHS looks like. It is not dramatic. It is not theatrical. It is quieter than that. It is shorter waiting lists. It is more appointments. It is people being seen when they need to be seen.
Here in North Staffordshire, waiting lists at Royal Stoke and County Hospital are down by more than 13,000 since the General Election. The Trust has secured an additional £2 million from NHS England for cutting treatment times. That means more operations, more clinics, and fewer people left in limbo.
Nationally, over five million extra NHS appointments have already been delivered in the first year – more than double the original commitment. More than 2,500 new GPs have been recruited since last October, helping patients get through the door more quickly.
That work matters here. Anyone who has tried to get a GP appointment at 8am sharp knows how frustrating the system has felt in recent years. Rebuilding capacity takes time, but it has begun.
Mental health must be treated with the same seriousness as physical health. In Stoke-on-Trent and Kidsgrove, too many people have told me how hard it has been to access support before reaching crisis point. Backed by £680 million in additional national funding, thousands of new mental health professionals are being recruited, expanding talking therapies and community services. That investment is helping to reduce waits and provide earlier intervention locally — whether for a young person struggling with anxiety or an adult facing severe depression — so that support arrives before situations escalate.
Prevention matters too. The Tobacco and Vapes Bill will create the first smoke-free generation, protecting young people from a lifetime of addiction. Freezing prescription charges below £10 for two consecutive years has helped families facing rising household costs.
The NHS was founded in 1948 by a Labour government on a simple principle: healthcare according to need, not ability to pay. That principle has endured because it commands support far beyond party lines. But it only works if the system functions.
No one pretends the job is finished. Waiting lists are still too high. Access to dentistry remains uneven. Staff are still working under pressure. But the direction has changed. The numbers are moving the right way. And, most importantly, people here in Stoke-on-Trent North and Kidsgrove are beginning to feel that change.
My test is straightforward: are residents being seen more quickly, treated with dignity, and given confidence in the care they receive? That is the standard I will continue to apply.
If you have experiences — good or bad — of local NHS services, or ideas about how we can keep improving them, I would be glad to hear from you. You can email david.williams.mp@parliament.uk or call 01782 950484.
The NHS belongs to all of us. And step by step, appointment by appointment, we must ensure it works for all of us again.