Fewer than one in 15 stroke survivors get enough rehab – report

Fewer than one in 15 stroke survivors receive the recommended amount of rehabilitation therapy, according to an audit of care in England, Wales and Northern Ireland.

Only 6.4 per cent of patients received the recommended three hours of therapy a day, at least five days a week, intended to maximise their chances of recovery.

The Stroke Association described the findings as evidence of inadequate rehabilitation provision, warning that a lack of support was limiting survivors’ ability to regain physical and mental function.

Juliet Bouverie, chief executive of the Stroke Association, criticised the findings.

She said: “These damning figures expose the deeply troubling reality that too many vulnerable stroke survivors are being left without the care and support they need, both in the critical days after their stroke and in the months and years that follow.

“The brain injury caused by stroke can change every aspect of a person’s life in an instant and last for a lifetime.

“Stroke is both a medical emergency and a long-term condition which touches on almost every aspect of NHS and social care.”

The figures come from the latest annual report of the Sentinel Stroke National Audit Programme (SSNAP), which assesses hospital stroke care across the three countries.

Almost 100,000 people experience a stroke each year in the UK, making it the country’s largest single cause of complex disability.

Survivors can experience difficulties with walking, speaking and swallowing. Annual stroke numbers could rise to 115,483 by 2030, partly because of an ageing population and increasing numbers of people with high blood pressure or diabetes.

National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) guidelines recommend three hours of rehabilitation daily, at least five days a week.

This includes physiotherapy, speech and language therapy and occupational therapy, whether patients are in hospital or recovering at home.

The guidance applies to NHS practice in England and Wales and is also followed in Northern Ireland.

The latest audit figures cover January to March 2026, when just 6.4 per cent of patients received the recommended amount of therapy.

This was down from 7.5 per cent in the earlier reporting period of October to December 2024.

Average therapy time also fell, from 46 minutes in the final quarter of 2024 to 40 minutes in the first quarter of 2026.

In the latest period, the lowest reported therapy figure was 15.2 minutes, while the highest was 57.3 minutes.

Only 68 per cent of patients received continuing rehabilitation support after leaving hospital.

The Stroke Association warned that services for stroke survivors were already under severe pressure as it published separate findings estimating the annual cost of stroke to the UK at £25.7bn.

Of that, £13.7bn relates to social care costs, while a further £6.7bn covers wider societal costs, including people being unable to work and relatives leaving employment to provide care.

Welfare benefits and lost income tax revenue associated with people being unable to work account for another £2.4bn, according to the charity.

The Department of Health and Social Care did not directly address the finding that most stroke patients were receiving less rehabilitation than recommended.

Instead, it pointed to NHS efforts to improve stroke treatment and longer-term support.

A spokesperson said: “Hundreds of people every day suffer a stroke, and the NHS is working hard to get them the rapid support and long-term rehabilitation they will often require.”

The department highlighted the government’s 10-year health plan, announced in 2025, which includes a commitment to reduce premature deaths from heart disease and stroke by a quarter within a decade.

It also referred to the cardiovascular disease modern service framework published in July 2026, which aims to accelerate improvements in care.

The NHS is working to increase the delivery of thrombolysis, which uses medication to dissolve blood clots, and thrombectomy, a procedure to remove clots from blocked blood vessels.

Both treatments are intended to improve outcomes for patients experiencing certain types of stroke.