Your Guide to the Royal Free Hospital

The Royal Free Hospital on Pond Street is one of North London's most important NHS trusts — a major teaching hospital with world-class facilities for everything from routine outpatient appointments to specialist liver transplantation and HIV treatment. If you live in Hampstead or nearby, it's almost inevitable you'll need to navigate its corridors at some point.

Getting There

The Royal Free is well served by public transport. The nearest tube station is Belsize Park (Northern line), roughly a 10-minute walk down Pond Street. Buses 46, 268 and C11 stop directly outside. If you're driving, note that parking on-site is limited and expensive — the main multi-storey on Rowland Hill Street charges from £4 per hour. Several roads nearby operate CPZ permits, so check signs carefully before leaving your car.

A&E and Urgent Care

The Emergency Department (A&E) is open 24 hours a day, seven days a week, and is accessed via the main entrance on Pond Street. For non-life-threatening conditions, you may be directed to the Urgent Treatment Centre within the same building, which typically has shorter waiting times than the main A&E. Always call 111 first if you're unsure whether your condition requires emergency care — they can book you a time slot and significantly reduce waiting times.

Key Departments

• Liver Centre — one of the UK's leading liver transplant units
• HIV/Sexual Health — a national reference centre with a pioneering reputation
• Oncology — the Hampstead Cancer Centre provides chemotherapy and radiotherapy
• Renal Unit — dialysis and kidney transplantation
• Maternity — the Royal Free delivers approximately 4,500 babies per year
• Neurology — including specialist MS and Parkinson's services

Outpatient Appointments

If you've been referred by your GP, outpatient appointments are booked through the NHS e-Referral Service (formerly Choose and Book). You'll receive a letter with instructions, or your GP may book on your behalf. Arrive 15 minutes early to check in at the relevant department reception. Many departments now offer virtual appointments by video — ask your GP if this is available for your referral.

Practical Tips

The hospital has a café on the ground floor (open daily 7am–8pm), a WHSmith pharmacy and convenience store near the main entrance, and free WiFi throughout public areas. Visiting hours vary by ward — always call ahead on 020 7794 0500 before visiting an inpatient. Prayer rooms and a multi-faith chaplaincy service are available on Level 1.

## What the Royal Free does The Royal Free Hospital on Pond Street is one of the major teaching hospitals of north-west London, serving a catchment of around 1.6 million people. It is part of the Royal Free London NHS Foundation Trust (which also includes Barnet Hospital and Chase Farm). The hospital handles roughly 750,000 outpatient appointments and 50,000 inpatient admissions a year. Major specialties include liver transplantation (nationally significant; around 200 transplants a year), renal medicine, infectious diseases (including the nationally commissioned high-consequence infectious diseases unit), HIV medicine, and haemophilia care. For heart, cancer, and complex paediatric cases, the Royal Free often refers on to UCLH or Great Ormond Street. ## A&E: what to expect The A&E department is open 24 hours and accepts self-referrals, ambulance arrivals, and GP-initiated urgent cases. Average waiting times for non-urgent presentations have run at four to six hours in recent years, though the four-hour target remains the Trust's published aim. Genuine emergencies (chest pain, stroke symptoms, major trauma) are seen within minutes. For anyone with a minor injury (sprains, small cuts, suspected fractures in otherwise well patients), the Urgent Treatment Centre — accessed through the main A&E entrance — is typically faster than the main emergency department. The UTC is open 24 hours. For common conditions that may not need hospital at all, the NHS Pharmacy First scheme at any Hampstead pharmacy can often resolve the problem faster than A&E. ## Outpatient appointments Outpatient appointments are by referral from a GP or internal consultant. Routine specialist appointments have typical waiting times of 6 to 14 weeks, with some specialties (dermatology, gastroenterology) running longer. The Trust uses the NHS e-Referral System; you can check waiting times by specialty before your GP submits the referral. For private appointments, the Royal Free has a dedicated private patient unit (Royal Free Private Patients), usable even by patients without private health insurance (self-pay rates published online). Private consultations are typically available within two weeks. ## Visiting and parking Visiting hours on most wards are 11am to 8pm, with some specialty wards running tighter schedules. Check with the specific ward before arriving; visiting rules for children and for patients with immune compromise are stricter. Parking on-site is limited and expensive — around £3 per hour, £20 for the day. Most visitors use the Pond Street NCP car park (five minutes' walk) or the Belsize Park meters (15-minute walk). Belsize Park tube is the nearest station (seven minutes); Hampstead Heath overground is closer for the south side of the hospital. ## Coffee, food, and practical survival The on-site cafés are functional rather than exciting. The Friends of the Royal Free shop on the ground floor sells newspapers, toiletries, and snacks. For actual meals, the cluster of cafés on Pond Street (Ginger & White branch, Friend and Ives) is within two minutes' walk. WiFi is free across the hospital; signal is reliable in the main building, patchy in the older wings.