The Care Quality Commission
  • Doctor
  • GP practice

Cuckoo Lane Practice

Overall: Good read more about inspection ratings

20 Church Road, London, W7 1DR (020) 8567 4315

Provided and run by:
Cuckoo Lane Health Care Limited

Important: This service was previously registered at a different address - see old profile

All Inspections

During an assessment under our new approach

Date of Assessment: We conducted an inspection between 1 and 2 December 2025, due to CQC staffing availability clinical searches for the practice were carried out on 5 February 2026. Cuckoo Lane Practice is an alternative provider of medical services, and the staff work as a multidisciplinary team with the core of the service being nurse led, but a GP is available for 3 hours daily. The provider delivers service to 6,031 patients under a contract held with NHS England. The service was previously under joint leadership, the leadership has since changed to a sole leadership and the leader informed us arrangements were being made to recruit an additional member. At the last inspection in 2015 we rated this service outstanding, however we found that some of those elements previously regarded as outstanding practice are now embedded throughout most GP practices. Whilst the provider had maintained this good practice, the threshold to achieve an outstanding rating overall has not been reached with this assessment.

The National General Practice Profiles states 56.87% of registered patients are White, 17.15% are Asian, 11.41% are Black, 6.81% are Mixed, and 7.76% are Other. Information published by Office for Health Improvement and Disparities shows that deprivation within the practice population group is in the 6th decile (6 of 10). The lower the decile, the more deprived the practice population is relative to others. This assessment considered the demographics of the people using the service, the context the service was working within and how this impacted service delivery. The service is registered with the Care Quality Commission under the Health and Social Care Act 2008 to provide the following regulated activities: diagnostic and screening procedures, maternity and midwifery services, and treatment of disease, disorder, or injury. Where relevant, further commentary is provided in the quality statements section of this report.

Safe: The service had a good learning culture and people could raise concerns. Managers investigated incidents thoroughly. People were protected and kept safe. Staff understood and managed risks. The facilities and equipment met the needs of people, were clean and well-maintained and any risks mitigated. There were enough staff with the right skills, qualifications and experience.

Effective: The service always supported people to manage their health and wellbeing to fully maximise their independence, choice and control. The service supported people to live healthier lives and where possible, reduce their future needs for care and support. Staff reviewed assessments taking account of people’s communication, personal and health needs. Care was based on latest evidence and good practice. Staff worked with all agencies involved in people’s care for the best outcomes and smooth transitions when moving services. Staff made sure people understood their care and treatment to enable them to give informed consent.

Caring: People were treated with kindness and compassion. Staff protected their privacy and dignity. They treated them as individuals and supported their preferences. People had choice in their care and treatment. The service supported staff wellbeing.

Responsive: People knew how to give feedback and were confident the service took it seriously and acted on it. The service was easy to access and worked to eliminate discrimination. People received fair and equal care and treatment. The service worked to reduce health and care inequalities through training and feedback. People were involved in planning their care and understood options around choosing to withdraw or not receive care.

Well-Led: Leaders and staff had a shared vision and culture based on listening, learning and trust. Leaders were visible, knowledgeable and supportive, helping staff develop in their roles. Staff felt supported to give feedback and were treated equally, free from bullying or harassment. Managers worked with the local community to deliver the best possible care and were receptive to new ideas. There was a culture of continuous improvement with staff given time and resources to try new ideas.

28 January 2015

During a routine inspection

Letter from the Chief Inspector of General Practice

We carried out a comprehensive inspection of Cuckoo Lane Practice on 28 January 2015. Overall the practice is rated as outstanding.

Specifically, we found the practice to be outstanding for being well-led and providing responsive and effective services. We found they were good for providing safe and caring services. It was also outstanding for the care provided to older people, people with long term conditions, families, children and young people, people living in vulnerable circumstances and people experiencing poor mental health (including people with dementia). They were good for the care and treatment they offered working aged people (including those recently retired) and people whose circumstances make them vulnerable.

Our key findings were as follows:

  • Arrangements were in place to ensure patients were kept safe. The practice learnt when things went wrong and shared learning with all staff to minimise the risk of reoccurrence
  • Patients’ needs were appropriately assessed and care and treatment was delivered in line with current legislation and best practice.
  • We saw from our observations and heard from patients that they were treated with dignity and respect.
  • The practice understood the needs of their patients and provided services that met their needs.
  • The practice was well-led, had a defined leadership structure and staff felt supported in their roles.

We saw areas of outstanding practice including:

  • One nurse practitioner at the practice carried out spirometry tests and also provided a weekly clinic for patients registered at other local practices. All COPD patients are given a self-management plan with particular reference to rescue medication. This has led improved symptom control and less hospital admissions for 25% of patients in this group over the last year.
  • The practice took part in the ‘shifting settings of care’ program which supported patients with mental illness access better, more integrated care outside of hospital and transfer the care of people with ‘common mental illness’ or stable ‘severe and enduring mental illness’ from mental health services into primary care. One impact being 19 patients who would have previously received care in Secondary care setting in the past are now receiving their support and treatment from their GP surgery.
  • An example of integrated care for older people is that an Age UK support worker attended the practice three days a week, to support older patients who live on their own. The practice also provided transport to improve access for those patients who are house bound or find it difficult to get to the surgery. Patients reported satisfaction and liked being able to attend the surgery. This improves socialisation and reduced the amount of home visits by 20 during its first month.
  • The practice was instrumental in establishing an Ealing wide approach to the three tier model of shared care for diabetes. This pilot project was part of a major redesign of diabetes care across Ealing and led to more diabetic nurse specialist being appointed including a Diabetic nurse consultant for the borough and weekly satellite clinics.

Professor Steve Field (CBE FRCP FFPH FRCGP) 

Chief Inspector of General Practice