Millbarn Medical Centre

On this page

• Overview
• Kindness, compassion and dignity
• Treating people as individuals
• Independence, choice and control
• Responding to people’s immediate needs
• Workforce wellbeing and enablement

We looked for evidence that the service involved people and treated them with compassion, kindness, dignity and respect.

Patient feedback was positive and highlighted the practice routinely treated people with kindness and compassion. Feedback received directly by CQC from patients highlighted that patient felt they were truly respected and valued as individuals (both practically and emotionally) and that this came from an exceptional and distinctive service.

Results from the National GP Patient Survey and the NHS Friends and Family Test were very positive. For example:

• 96% of respondents found the reception and administrative team helpful (national average 83%).

• 92% of respondents indicated that during their last appointment, the healthcare professional was very good or fairly good at treating them with care and concern (national average 86%).

Throughout the inspection, we observed staff treat people with kindness, empathy and compassion.

Staff feedback about the caring culture within the practice was positive, staff told us leaders always cared about and promoted the wellbeing of their staff and were exceptional at supporting and enabling staff to deliver person-centred care.

This is the first inspection for this practice since its registration with CQC. This key question has been rated as OUTSTANDING.

This service scored 100 (out of 100) for this area. Find out what we look at when we assess this area and How we calculate these scores.

The practice was exceptional at treating people with kindness, empathy and compassion and in how they respected people’s privacy and dignity. Staff always treated colleagues from other organisations with kindness and respect. Despite high levels of positive patient and staff satisfaction, leaders demonstrated that they were continually striving to improve services for patients.

We reviewed the results from the National GP Patient Survey carried out from January to March 2025 (a total of 123 surveys were completed by patients which was a completion rate of 35%).

Patients’ responses to survey questions on how they were cared for were higher when compared to local and national averages. On review, even with a 21% increase in registered patients over 3 years (8,574 patients in 2023 to 10,467 patients in Feb 2026) we saw each year the practice consistently achieved higher scores when compared to local and national averages.

The survey showed:

• 96% of respondents found the reception and administrative team helpful, which was significantly higher when compared to the local average (83%) and national average (83%).

• 92% of respondents indicated that during their last appointment, the healthcare professional was very good or fairly good at treating them with care and concern. This was higher when compared to both the local average (87%) and the national average (86%).

Arrangements were in place to promote patients’ privacy; this included a designated private room for breast feeding.

Staff that chaperoned patients were aware of their responsibilities in maintaining a person’s dignity and safety during an intimate examination, and we observed notices around the practice advising that chaperones were available and ready to support patients.

Staff we spoke with understood Gillick competency and there was a process to ensure young adults had control over their own privacy and the amount of parental involvement in managing their care and support.

We reviewed feedback and testimonials the practice had collected from patients and patient’s families. This feedback was positive about the care and compassion provided and included examples of kindness and empathy when patients were approaching the end of their lives. Feedback and testimonies highlighted the caring nature of the clinical staff whereby high-quality care was provided which was tailored to individuals needs and preferences. This included making arrangements to ensure care was focused on comfort during the final stages of life; ensuring patents were surrounds by their family members.

People who had completed CQC ‘Give Feedback on Care’ forms also gave exceptionally positive feedback about the staff. Comments included phrases such as ‘thoughtful’, ‘kind’, ‘person centred’, ‘friendly’ and ‘helpful.’ This evidenced the caring and compassionate culture at the heart of the service. Patient feedback also included examples of the practice calling and offering support at time of difficult diagnosis, bereavement, and other emotionally sensitive situations.

A key theme in staff feedback was the caring nature of leaders relating to patients and staff. Staff told us, they felt empowered to deliver high-quality, considerate, and empathetic care.

We saw evidence of tailored working arrangements in place for staff facing temporary personal difficulties. This included flexible working patterns, positive re-enforcement, career progression opportunities and encouragement for training and career progression. We observed a culture of kindness and respect.

The practice treated people as individuals and was exceptional in how they made sure people’s care, support and treatment met people’s needs and preferences. The practice took account of people’s strengths, abilities, aspirations, culture and unique backgrounds and protected characteristics. This included recent work with other local services to support those patients in different types of temporary accommodation.

Patients’ personal, cultural, social, religious and equality characteristics needs were understood and met. We saw a range of examples where patient communication needs were met to enable them to be fully involved in their care.

The practice had identified that there were a number of military veterans in their patient population (45 patients) and had taken action to help ensure this group of patients received suitable individual support including access to appointments and referrals to dedicated NHS services such as OpCOURAGE (the veterans mental health and well-being service). We noted this was in line with the Government’s Armed Forces Covenant. The practice encouraged these patients to identify themselves through signage at the practice, military veteran information packs, information on the practice website and via questions on the ‘new patient’ form.

All staff had completed the first modules of learning disability and autism awareness training, and people with complex health needs were given longer appointments to review their needs. The practice offered a quiet place for people to sit whilst waiting for their appointments who may be anxious to wait in a busy and noisy room.

Feedback we saw highlighted examples when the practice had gone above and beyond to support neurodivergent patients and their individual preferences. For example, prior to the relocation to the new premises, neurodivergent patients and their families could visit the new premises to acclimatise to the new, unfamiliar surroundings such as the waiting areas and treatment rooms.

The practice promoted people’s independence, so people knew their rights and had choice and control over their own care, treatment and wellbeing.

The practice identified patients who were carers. The practice’s computer system alerted staff if a patient was also a carer. The practice had identified 354 patients as carers, this equated to over 3% of the practice list. We were shown the written information available for carers to ensure they understood the various avenues of support available to them, including promoting completion of regular carers risk assessments and providing information from Carers Bucks (an independent charity to support unpaid, family carers in Buckinghamshire).

Feedback we reviewed, from people who identified themselves as carers specifically mentioned that they benefited from longer consultations and continuity of care with staff members so they could openly talk about their needs with choice and control over care and treatment.

The practice had implemented a new process (and additional alerts for staff to check, discuss and amend if required) regarding parent/guardian proxy access for those patients aged between 11 and 16 in addition to those aged over 16. The aim of this was to raise awareness to this cohort of patients to ensure they were aware of changes in data sharing, whilst ensuring confidentially was respected and patients had control and oversight over their care. The reception manager audited proxy access each month to ensure access was accurate and up to date.

We noted the practice routinely signposted patients to local community organisations to support patients’ independence, health and wellbeing. These included voluntary organisations supporting people with long term conditions. The latest National GP Patient Survey results reflected this proactive work. For example:

87% of respondents fed back they had had enough support from local services or organisations in the last 12 months to help manage their long-term conditions or illnesses, this was significantly higher than local (71%) and national averages (69%).

The practice was exceptional in how they listened to and understood people’s needs, views and wishes. Staff responded to people’s needs in the moment and acted to minimise any discomfort, concern or distress.

There was a system for appointment triage that ensured people with immediate needs had access to services. Staff we spoke with knew the process for referral to emergency support, including mental health crisis teams.

A duty doctor was available each day to support non-clinical staff. Patients’ needs were usually managed on the day of contact with the practice, with continuity and timings central to any outcome. This was confirmed when we reviewed the appointment system and performance dashboards during the site visit. The remaining were either signposted or offered an appointment in the future to meet their needs rather than having to call back. People were directed to the most appropriate person or service to meet their needs and ensure continuity of care where required.

Staff told us this was working well and if they had any concerns about a patient and there were no appointments left on the day, they could discuss this with the clinicians who would assess the patient’s needs. We observed staff were very attentive to patients needs and assisted them positively.

In 2021, the practice was an early adopter and introduced online consultation service to improve the efficiency of the triage process by providing an immediate assessment of the clinical urgency of patients, thus ensuring patients were seen by the right person at the right time.

This system was under constant review to ensure it worked as intended for both the practice and patients. The annual review for 2025 showed 39,812 online requests had been made, the average time for each review of a case was less than 4 minutes and the average time for the case to be completed or actioned was less than 6 minutes. This data alongside patient and staff feedback indicates the practice responded to patients’ immediate needs promptly.

Feedback received by CQC highlighted several positive cases of patients being able to see or speak with a clinician quickly. This included feedback from the care home, they advised whilst the weekly ward round was every Tuesday, the practice was responsive to their immediate needs outside of these hours. We were assured that responding to people’s immediate needs was a priority and that systems were in place to avoid any preventable discomfort, concern or distress.

Leaders within the practice always cared about and promoted the wellbeing of their staff and were exceptional at supporting and enabling staff to always deliver person-centred care. Staff told us the culture within the practice prioritised their wellbeing through inclusivity, active listening, and open conversations. This empowered staff to do their job well and to be well.

Staff told us they were valued by leaders and felt fully involved in the relocation to the new building. Leaders had taken steps to recognise and meet the wellbeing needs of staff, which included the necessary resources and facilities for safe working, including workplace risk assessments. Staff reported being supported if they were struggling at work and actions to address triggers were acted upon. For example, reception staff highlighted an area of training which would be useful to help manage difficult situations and stressful events, this was arranged and acted upon with training completed.

We saw team building days and social events were established within the practice. Recent events included a treasure hunt around the local town and chair yoga with a view to build strength, stability, flexibility alongside mental clarity and fun within the team.

Staff fed back that moving to a large, new building on top of ongoing primary care challenges had at times been challenging and daunting, but the team worked as one to achieve the desired ambition whilst delivering high quality care.

Staff told us they felt supported and provided examples of how leaders and peers had checked in on their wellbeing during difficult times.

Staff we spoke with, and evidence we saw demonstrated a high level of training opportunities for staff. Staff told us they were encouraged to expand their roles and we saw a variety of staff who achieved career progression, development and enrichment.

The practice actively sought staff feedback through appraisals, meetings, individual check ins and during opportunistic collaboration. Responses indicated that staff felt well supported overall, and the culture within the practice provided a valuable platform for suggesting innovative ideas and improvements which the leaders acted on. For example, given the relocation from a small practice to a large multi-service modern building hosting 2 practices in 2022 (a significant upscale in size), staff reported opportunities to gather as a team had reduced. Leaders acted upon staff suggestions to recreate the previous small practice environment with the creation of a coffee/tea break area alongside scheduled break times. This increased the potential for team collaboration and created a sense of team, despite being in a large building. Staff feedback was positive regarding this initiative, with staff reporting it boosted their productivity, stimulated creative thinking and supported their wellbeing.

Staff described other times where they had received support and adjustments been made to their working arrangements to enable them to continue and flourish in their role.

Feedback from GP registrars highlighted extra steps the practice team had taken to support their individual placements with pre-placement checks to ensure adjustments, queries and learning goals were agreed to enable an effective placement for both the individual trainee and the practice.