Latest NHS England figures show:

• Overall waiting list down to 7.6m treatments
• Busiest January ever for A&E attendances and most urgent ambulance callouts
• Number of people waiting in A&E more than 12 hours after the decision to admit rose to 54,000 in January
• Flu cases in hospital beds (around 2,500) highest this winter – more than double the same week last year
• 74% of cancer patients seen inside target 28 days, almost three in four received all-clear or a diagnosis – nearly 14,000 more than previous December.

Sir Julian Hartley, chief executive, NHS Providers, said:

"The figures show a strike-hit NHS managing to cut waiting lists and reduce unnecessary hospital stays while under extreme pressure across urgent and emergency care and services throughout the system.

"Seasonal pressure and other factors including staff absences and strikes dealt a blow to elective and diagnostic activity in December. But sheer hard work by trusts has resulted in further reductions to the longest waits for treatment and inroads made to overall waiting lists.

"But persistent pressure across the NHS – not just in hospitals but on ambulance, mental health and community services too – makes further progress a hard task. Hospitals still have more than 13,000 beds taken up every day by patients who are fit to be recovering at or close to home but who can't be discharged, often because of a lack of social care capacity in the community.

"We may not be over the worst of winter with many more people needing to be treated for seasonal illnesses and bugs."

You can follow our analysis of the latest winter situation report figures from NHS England through our NHS Winter Watch campaign.