Contact the NHS directly on their general enquiries phone number 0300 311 2233 for complaints about their 111 advice helpline, to find your nearest GP surgery and for feedback about a hospital stay.
NHS England – 0300 311 2233
Contact NHS England by calling their general enquiries phone number 0300 311 2233 to find your nearest health service including hospitals, general practitioners (GPs) and pharmacies. Here you can also make a formal complaint about any aspect of the health service such as misdiagnosis, delayed surgeries and poor cleaning processes which led to an infection.
The National Health Service (NHS) helpline is open from 8am-6pm Monday, Tuesday, Thursday and Friday as well as 9:30am-6pm Wednesday. Calls are charged at the standard call rate which is set by your provider, typically these consist of a per-minute charge and a per-call access fee. Note that you will be able to contact the NHS for free if you get inclusive minutes as part of your landline or mobile tariff.
NHS Scotland – 0141 414 2888
Contact NHS Scotland on their dedicated phone number 0141 414 2888 for all enquiries about public healthcare in the region including immunisation requests, complaints about hospital closures and finding your nearest healthcare providers. You should also call this helpline for updates on healthcare policy which has been determined by the devolved administration in Scotland. Here you may also submit freedom of information requests including personal data about your healthcare as well as general statistics.
NHS Wales – 029 2074 7747
Call NHS Wales on their telephone contact number 029 2074 7747 to find your nearest healthcare provider within the principality, for complaints about any aspect of your medical treatment and for assistance setting up a repeat prescription. Please be aware that this number primarily applies to residents within Cardiff and the surrounding districts, therefore if you live in a different part of Wales you should consult the table below to identify which helpline you should call instead.
| NHS Wales health board | Telephone number |
|---|---|
| Cardiff & Vale University Health Board | 029 2074 7747 |
| Abertawe Bro Morgannwg University Health Board | 01639 683 344 |
| Aneurin Bevan University Health Board | 01873 732 732 |
| Betsi Cadwaladr University Health Board | 01248 384 384 |
| Cwm Taf University Health Board | 01443 744 800 |
| Hywel Dda University Health Board | 01267 235 151 |
| Powys Teaching Health Board | 01874 711 661 |
HSC Northern Ireland – 0300 555 0115
Contact the Health & Social Care (HSC) Board on their general enquiries phone number 0300 555 0115 for details about GPs, pharmacies, hospitals and walk-in centres within Northern Ireland. Moreover you can use this service to query decisions which have been made to close a healthcare provider in your area and to provide feedback for the relevant public enquiry.
NHS 111 – 111
Phone NHS for non-emergency medical support by calling their helpline contact number 111, where a trained advisor will provide details on how you can self-treat your condition or what steps to take next. For instance if you are unsure whether you need to visit a hospital or you do not have a registered GP you can call this number to be directed to the appropriate healthcare service. If necessary the NHS 111 advisor will send an ambulance to your location if they believe you have a serious condition which requires urgent treatment. This helpline is staffed 24 hours a day, seven days a week including UK bank holidays.
Emergency assistance – 999
Contact the NHS ambulance service on their emergency phone number 999 if you or someone around you is suffering from a critical or life-threatening health issue. This many include unconsciousness, breathing difficulties, severe chest pains which may be associated with a heart attack, heavy blood loss and severe injury. If you just require health services please request “ambulance” when prompted by the operator, however incidents which require multiple services (such as road traffic accidents) should be directed via the “police” option. Please note that you should only call this helpline in an emergency, as misuse of this service can risk lives. If you are suffering from a non-serious medical incident you should instead use the 111 service provided above. The emergency 999 service is open 24 hours a day, seven days a week and is free of charge from all telephone devices.
NHS contact numbers
| Department | Phone number |
|---|---|
| NHS England | 0300 311 2233 |
| NHS Scotland | 0141 414 2888 |
| NHS Wales | 029 2074 7747 |
| HSC Northern Ireland | 0300 555 0115 |
| NHS 111 | 111 |
| Emergency assistance | 999 |
Other ways to contact the NHS
If you would prefer not to contact the NHS via telephone you may choose from a range of alternative options including postal addresses and email forms. You may also use their official service finder to locate your nearest GP, hospital or pharmacy.
Write to the NHS
You can contact the NHS in writing by sending your letters to the postal address most appropriate to your location within the United Kingdom. Please be aware that it may take them up to a week to respond to your enquiries hence urgent medical questions should be directed to the 111 or 999 services.
- NHS England postal address
- NHS England, PO Box 16738, Redditch, B97 9PT, United Kingdom.
- Write to NHS Scotland
- NHS Scotland, Gyle Square, 1 South Gyle Crescent, Edinburgh, EH12 9EB, United Kingdom.
- Write to the Welsh Government about NHS Wales services
- NHS Wales, Cathays Park, Cardiff, CF10 3NQ, United Kingdom.
- Write to HSC Northern Ireland
- Health and Social Care Board Headquarters, 12-22 Linenhall Street, Belfast, BT2 8BS, United Kingdom.
NHS email addresses & contact forms
Send an email to the NHS board in your UK area by using the relevant form or online address provided below. These services are free of charge however it may take them up to 48 hours to respond to your enquiries.
- NHS England postal address
- england.contactus@nhs.net
- Fill out a NHS Scotland email form
- www.healthscotland.scot/contact-us/general-enquiries/your-general-enquiry
- Contact NHS Wales via email
- www.wales.nhs.uk/contactus
- Send an email to the HSC Board (Northern Ireland)
- Enquiry.hscb@hscni.net
NHS service finder
Use the NHS service finder for your UK area to find A&E units, walk-in centres, GPs and other healthcare providers:
- Find an NHS healthcare provider in England
- www.nhs.uk/service-search
- NHS Scotland service finder
- www.nhsinform.scot/national-service-directory
- NHS service finder for residents in Wales
- www.nhsdirect.wales.nhs.uk/localservices
- HSC service finder (Northern Ireland)
- servicefinder.hscni.net