Hospital bosses say good financial management and overall performance have contributed to their high ranking in new NHS national league tables.

North Tees and Hartlepool NHS Foundation Trust placed 22nd out of 134 for acute hospital trusts of its size in data published by the Department for Health & Social Care.

Trusts are ranked within one of four categories, with one being the highest, based on a score by averaging their performance against a range of targets, such as reducing waiting times for treatment and for being seen in A&E departments, or improving ambulance response times.

North Tees and Hartepool is in the second highest category and has an overall score of 2.20.

University Hospital of Hartlepool is part of the North Tees and Hartlepool NHS Foundation Trust.

placeholder image — University Hospital of Hartlepool is part of the North Tees and Hartlepool NHS Foundation Trust.

A spokesperson for University Hospitals Tees, which runs the trust along with South Tees Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust, said financial pressures associated with the South Tees trust prevented it being ranked higher.

They added: “With respect to North Tees and Hartlepool NHS Foundation Trust, our financial position coupled with good performance has resulted in a higher ranking, but we know there is further work to deliver.

“In terms of performance, we are focusing on continued improvement of our waits over 52 weeks and our cancer performance as a group.

“However, thanks to the hard work and commitment of our teams, we continue to maximise opportunities to ensure we provide the highest level of quality care for our patients, improve health and wellbeing outcomes for our population and ultimately, support our position in the future."

Health Secretary Wes Streeting said: “The public pays for the NHS. They own it. They deserve to know how it’s performing”.