Women across the country will be better heard and served under new plans set out in the government's renewed Women’s Health Strategy, published on Wednesday 15 April 2026.
The renewed strategy will put women’s experiences at the centre of care across the healthcare system, ensuring patient’s voices are listened to and acted upon, including exploring ways in which women’s feedback can be directly linked to provider funding and targeted improvements through a new trial. The move aims to ensure services are held accountable for listening to women, in a bid to stamp out long-standing issues with women being ignored.
Women will be directed to the right professional first time through a single referral point, along with aligning local services with online support to drastically cut waiting lists and ensure women no longer face years-long waits for diagnosis and treatment for conditions like endometriosis, which can take nearly a decade to diagnose.
A new standard of care will also be produced to ensure women are finally offered appropriate and effective pain relief for invasive gynaecological procedures, from contraceptive fitting through to hysteroscopies, addressing long-standing concerns around inadequate pain management.
Health and Social Care Secretary, Wes Streeting, said: “We inherited a broken NHS, which was particularly felt by women, who have for so long been let down by a healthcare system that too often gaslights women, treating their pain as an inconvenience and their symptoms as an overreaction."
“Whether it’s being passed from one appointment to another for conditions like endometriosis and fibroids, or a lack of proper pain relief during invasive procedures, through to having to navigate symptoms for years before receiving a diagnosis, it’s clear the system is failing women."
“Women’s voices must be central to delivering effective, respectful and empathetic care. We need to hit medical misogyny where it hurts – the wallet. Today’s renewed strategy will tackle the issues women face everyday and ensure no woman is left fighting to be heard.”
Leah Gallon, Associate Director for Innovation Adoption at Health Innovation Wessex attended the launch of the refreshed strategy representing the Health Innovation Network. Women's health aligns with numerous Health Innovation Network projects from Black Maternity Matters, the Forging a More Equitable Future: Innovation in Women's Health report, and innovation adoption for menopause and pelvic health which is taking place locally in Dorset.
Leah said: "The refreshed Women’s Health Strategy is a really positive step forward for improving access, outcomes and experience for women and girls. At Health Innovation Wessex, this is work we are already delivering — helping evidence‑based innovations to be adopted, spread and scaled to benefit women and girls across Wessex. We are working closely with local health systems to understand their priorities and support the adoption of new pathways, diagnostics, digital tools, devices and workforce models."
"Our goal is simple: spread what works and make sure it lands where it can have the biggest impact. We therefore welcome today's funding announcement to help accelerate the adoption and spread of innovations that will transform women’s healthcare. This renewed strategy will help re-focus how we move forward and continue to drive change around access, experience, prevention, self management and outcomes for women and girls in every community. We’re proud to support this national ambition and look forward to working with partners who share our commitment to improving women’s health across Wessex and beyond."
Ben Bridgewater, Executive Chair, the Health Innovation Network, said: “The renewed Women’s Health Strategy rightly seeks to address the long-standing inequalities in health care faced by women across the country which is both unjust and known to be one of the greatest opportunities to improve national productivity and growth. It is the latest government strategy to recognise the key role health innovation has to improve health and economic growth in all communities. The Health Innovation Network is particularly encouraged to see the commitment to accelerating the adoption of femtech, which we have long considered a key priority.”
Women’s health has also been prioritised through the announcement of NHS Online – which will support women with menstrual and menopausal symptoms, along with bringing care into the community through new and expanded community diagnostic centres, offering services including blood tests and MRIs to dramatically cut waits between gynaecological appointments.
Other reforms set out in the renewed strategy include:
- Redesigning clinical pathways for heavy periods, urogynaecology and menopause to speed up diagnosis and treatment
- Funding a specialist centre in each region to introduce group-based approaches to care, helping women understand and manage their conditions better
- Launching a new £1 million programme to improve menstrual education so girls are better equipped to recognise the signs and symptoms of unhealthy periods
- Launching a £1.5 million femtech challenge fund to accelerate adoption of innovations that could transform women’s healthcare in the future
- Establishing the women’s voices partnership to bring organisations representing women together to hep inform future policy and decision making
- Provide better access to contraceptive and abortion care with continued support for protected spaces
- Review how different levels of support should work for families who experience repeated baby loss, and update the guidance with the findings
- From this year, include a question about menopause symptoms in the standard NHS Health Check offered to all adults aged 40 to 74, giving up to five million women an easier route to advice and support.
