Interactive tool + data
Source data from GOV.UK NHS-funded IVF in England, published under the Open Government Licence v3.0.
Headline numbers
Ready-to-use story angles
1. NICE says 3 cycles — most ICBs fund 1
NICE Clinical Guideline CG156 recommends 3 full cycles of IVF for eligible women under 40. In practice, only 2 of 38 ICBs meet this recommendation (North East and North Cumbria, North East London). The majority fund just 1 non-full cycle — meaning no funded frozen embryo transfers from surplus embryos. The average across all ICBs is 1.4 cycles.
Check your ICB's policy →2. Three ICBs cut eligibility at age 35
While most ICBs set the upper age limit at 39-42, three set it at just 35: Buckinghamshire, Oxfordshire and Berkshire West, Frimley, Hampshire and Isle of Wight. A 36-year-old living in Hampshire or Berkshire is automatically ineligible for NHS IVF — but the same woman living one ICB over in Dorset (age limit 42) or Sussex (age limit 42) would qualify.
3. Four ICBs have NO published policy
4 ICBs are listed as “under review” with no published IVF commissioning policy: Cheshire and Merseyside, Greater Manchester, Humber and North Yorkshire, Leicester, Leicestershire and Rutland. Patients in these areas have no transparent guidance on whether NHS IVF is available and must rely on their GP to navigate the system.
4. The true cost gap: £0 vs £6,210
If you qualify for NHS IVF, you pay nothing. If you don't, the UK average true cost per cycle is £6,210 (£4,890 advertised + medication, ICSI, tests, storage). In London: £7,463. Most couples need 2-3 cycles, putting the total private cost at £12,000-£22,000 — a burden that falls disproportionately on patients in areas with the most restrictive ICB policies.
See clinic-by-clinic pricing →5. 2 ICBs don't fund embryo freezing
Cambridgeshire and Peterborough, Herefordshire and Worcestershire do not fund cryopreservation of surplus embryos. This means patients in these areas who produce multiple viable embryos during their funded cycle must either discard the extras or pay privately for storage (typically £275/year) — reducing the value of their funded cycle compared to patients in ICBs that include cryo.
Full ICB funding league table
| ICB | Cycles | Type | Max age | Cryo |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| North Central London | 3 + 1 | Non-full | 40–42 | Yes |
| North East and North Cumbria | 3 + 1 | Full | 40–42 | Yes |
| North East London | 3 + 1 | Full | 40–42 | Yes |
| Mid and South Essex | 2 + 1 | Non-full | 39–42 | Yes |
| Norfolk and Waveney | 2 + 1 | Non-full | 39–42 | Yes |
| South East London | 2 + 1 | Full | 39–42 | Yes |
| Suffolk and North East Essex | 2 + 1 | Non-full | 39–42 | Yes |
| South Yorkshire | 2 | Full | 42 | Yes |
| Kent and Medway | 2 | Non-full | 40 | Yes |
| Surrey Heartlands | 2 | Non-full | 40 | Yes |
| Gloucestershire | 2 | Non-full | 39 | Yes |
| Bedfordshire, Luton and Milton Keynes | 1 | Non-full | 42 | Yes |
| Cambridgeshire and Peterborough | 1 | Non-full | 42 | No |
| Derby and Derbyshire | 1 | Full | 42 | Yes |
| Dorset | 1 | Non-full | 42 | Yes |
| Hertfordshire and West Essex | 1 | Non-full | 42 | Yes |
| Lancashire and South Cumbria | 1 | Full | 42 | Yes |
| Northamptonshire | 1 | Full | 42 | Yes |
| Nottingham and Nottinghamshire | 1 | Full | 42 | Yes |
| South West London | 1 | Non-full | 42 | Yes |
| Sussex | 1 | Non-full | 42 | Yes |
| West Yorkshire | 1 | Full | 42 | Yes |
| Bath and North East Somerset, Swindon and Wiltshire | 1 | Non-full | 40 | Yes |
| Birmingham and Solihull | 1 | Non-full | 40 | Yes |
| Black Country | 1 | Non-full | 40 | Yes |
| Bristol, North Somerset and South Gloucestershire | 1 | Non-full | 40 | Yes |
| Cornwall and the Isles of Scilly | 1 | Non-full | 40 | Yes |
| Coventry and Warwickshire | 1 | Non-full | 40 | Yes |
| Devon | 1 | Non-full | 40 | Yes |
| Lincolnshire | 1 | Full | 40 | Yes |
| North West London | 1 | Non-full | 40 | Yes |
| Shropshire, Telford and Wrekin | 1 | Full | 40 | Yes |
| Somerset | 1 | Non-full | 40 | Yes |
| Herefordshire and Worcestershire | 1 | Non-full | 39 | No |
| Staffordshire and Stoke-on-Trent | 1 | Non-full | 39 | Yes |
| Buckinghamshire, Oxfordshire and Berkshire West | 1 | Non-full | 35 | Yes |
| Frimley | 1 | Non-full | 35 | Yes |
| Hampshire and Isle of Wight | 1 | Non-full | 35 | Yes |
| Cheshire and Merseyside | Under review — no published policy | |||
| Greater Manchester | Under review — no published policy | |||
| Humber and North Yorkshire | Under review — no published policy | |||
| Leicester, Leicestershire and Rutland | Under review — no published policy | |||
Suggested attribution
Methodology
Treatcompare extracts per-ICB IVF commissioning policies from the GOV.UK NHS-funded IVF in England publication. The dataset covers all 42 English ICBs. Private cost estimates use the Seen Fertility “true cost” methodology (advertised price + 27% for medication, ICSI, tests, and storage). Clinic data from HFEA. Full methodology at /methodology.
Press contact
For interviews, custom data cuts, or chart embeds, email data@treatcompare.com. Treatcompare is a trading name of Indexeli Intelligence Limited (Companies House 17096578).