Patients in England can get checks, tests and scans done out of hours at 100 community-based diagnostic centres which are now open 12 hours a day seven days a week, it has been announced.
Extending the opening hours for Community Diagnostic Centres (CDCs) is increasing access to health services and speeding up diagnosis for thousands of patients, according to the Department of Health and Social Care (DHSC)
Some 7.2 million CDC tests and scans have been delivered since July 2024.
Shopping centres, community hospitals and university campuses are among the venues closer to people’s homes where the centres are based and open out of hours for health appointments.
Health Secretary Wes Streeting said the Government is “determined to offer healthcare that fits around working people’s lives and not the other way around”.
He added: “From early morning MRI scans to late evening blood tests, we’re meeting patients where they need it most by extending the operating hours for community diagnostic centres and putting patients first.”
The NHS delivered more than 1.6 million more tests and scans from July 2024 to June 2025 and there were 218,463 people who had cancer ruled out or diagnosed within 28 days, the DHSC said.
Improved performance on the faster diagnosis standard means that nearly 97,000 more people had cancer diagnosed or ruled out within 28 days between July 2024 and June 2025, compared to the same period last year.
At Oldham CDC in Greater Manchester, extended opening hours have cut lung cancer diagnosis times from 42 days to just 18.8 days, while Queen Victoria Hospital CDC in East Grinstead, West Sussex, is recording five times more respiratory patient interactions per session, with 92% avoiding the need for hospital outpatient appointments.
Patients can be referred to CDCs through their GP or hospital-based clinical teams.
Mr Streeting said the Government’s 10-year health plan is “revolutionising how healthcare works” and the measures are helping to bring care closer to the community.
Professor Meghana Pandit, NHS England national medical director, said: “We know people are living incredibly busy lives and it’s vital NHS care reflects that.
“The services provided by Community Diagnostics Centres enable people to receive the all-clear or a diagnosis at a time and location that suits them, whether before a school drop off or after a work shift, and extending their opening hours means more people are being seen more quickly.”
CDCs can provide a range of tests including MRI and CT scans, echocardiography and phlebotomy services.
Wayne Rowlands, who visited the Norfolk and Norwich University Hospital Community Diagnostic Centre for an emergency CT scan, described it as a “pleasant experience” in a setting that was “very bright and not at all like a hospital”.
The Government’s plan for change is backed by more than £6 billion of additional capital investment to improve capacity for elective, diagnostic, and urgent care services over five years, with more than £600 million capital funding committed for 2025/26 to transform diagnostic services.
This includes funding up to five additional CDCs in 2025/26 and extending opening hours for all CDCs at evenings and at weekends.
Laura Challinor from the Blood Cancer UK charity welcomed the move but said more must be done to tackle regional variation and speed up testing.
She said: “It’s imperative that everyone affected by blood cancer can readily access the diagnostic tests and appointments they need.
“With blood cancer being the UK’s third biggest cancer killer and survival lagging behind countries of similar wealth and health, doing all we can to turn that tide is critical.”
