NHS diagnostic waits  ·  Bristol, City of ·  Hearing test

Audiology and hearing test waiting time at Bristol Royal Infirmary

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3
weeks
Median wait so far in the current NHS audiology and hearing test queue.
NHS DM01 data, August 2026

Where it’s done at Bristol Royal Infirmary

Hearing test is done in the audiology department at Bristol NHS Foundation Trust. To be seen you usually need a referral: most people are referred by their GP, and some by a hospital specialist. Once referred, the appointment comes by letter, text or the NHS App.

What an audiology (hearing test) appointment involves, on the NHS website →
See hearing test waits and your options across the NHS →

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Your options from here

1Free on the NHS
Stay on the NHS for your scan
Wait the NHS scan queue. 3 weeks typical wait here.
2Free on the NHS
Switch to a faster NHS hospital for your scan
When your GP refers you for your hearing test, Right to Choose lets you ask to go to a faster NHS hospital.
3Part paid
Private scan, keep your NHS place
Pay for the scan privately, then rejoin the NHS for treatment.
4Self funded or insured
Go fully private
The scan and any follow-up, all private.
See my full options →Information only. We do not recommend a route.

More about Bristol NHS Foundation Trust

How deep the queue is now

78%
22%
0 to 6 weeks
Over 6 weeks
Share of the current hearing test queue at this trust by whether they have passed six weeks, August 2026. The NHS standard is that fewer than 1% wait over six weeks.

NHS hospitals near Bristol, City of

Bristol Royal Infirmary (current)
0 mi
3 weeks
Royal United Hospitals Bath NHS Foundation Trust · Bath and North East Somerset
10 mi
1 week
Gloucestershire Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust · Cheltenham
37 mi
2 weeks
Wye Valley NHS Trust · Herefordshire, County of
42 mi
2 weeks
Hampshire and Isle of Wight Healthcare NHS Foundation Trust · New Forest
59 mi
1 week
Hampshire Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust · Basingstoke and Deane
65 mi
2 weeks
Torbay and South Devon NHS Foundation Trust · Torbay
79 mi
2 weeks
Median hearing test wait so far in the current queue, August 2026, straight-line from this hospital. Switching does not guarantee a shorter wait.

How we know this

NHS DM01 diagnostics data, August 2026.
The whole trust (Bristol NHS Foundation Trust), a current-queue snapshot, not a prediction.
Wait or Pay is independent and is not the NHS. We show the routes and let you choose. Nothing here is medical advice.

How long will you really wait, and how could you go sooner?

Your free companion dashboard compares all four paths for hearing loss treatment: wait, switch to a faster NHS hospital, part-private, or fully private. It names the faster hospitals near you, shows what going private would cost, and gives you letters ready to send. You can print it or save it as a PDF. Free, and nothing is locked or paid.

Get your free companion dashboard→