Objectives To describe prevalence of chronic kidney disease (CKD), demographic and clinical characteristics, treatment patterns and rates of cardiovascular and renal complications for patients with type 2 diabetes (T2D) treated in routine clinical care.

Design Repeat cross-sectional study (6 monthly cross-sections) and cohort study from 1 January 2017 to 31 December 2019.

Setting Primary care data from English practices contributing to the UK Clinical Practice Research Datalink linked to Hospital Episode Statistics and Office for National Statistics mortality data.

Participants Patients with T2D aged >18 years, at least one year of registration data.

Primary and secondary outcomes Primary outcome was prevalence of CKD defined as chronic kidney disease epidemiology collaboration (CKD-EPI) estimated glomerular filtration rate <60 mL/min/1.73 m2, and/or urinary albumin creatinine ratio ≥3 mg/mmol in the past 24 months. Secondary outcomes were prescriptions of medications of interest and clinical and demographic characteristics in the past 3 months.

In the cohort study rates of renal and cardiovascular complications, all-cause mortality and hospitalisations over the study period were compared among those with and without CKD.

Results There were 574 190 eligible patients with T2D as of 1 January 2017 and 664 296 as of 31 December 2019. Estimated prevalence of CKD across the study period was stable at approximately 30%. Medication use was stable over time in people with CKD and T2D, with low use of steroidal mineralocorticoid receptor antagonists (approximately 4.5% across all time points) and a low use but steady increase in use of sodium-glucose co-transporter-2 inhibitors (from 2.6% to 6.2%). Rates of all complications were higher in those with CKD at the start of the study period, with increasing rates, with increased severity of CKD, heart failure and albuminuria.

Conclusions The burden of CKD in patients with T2D is high and associated with substantially increased rates of complications particularly in those with comorbid heart failure.