Woodstock Bower Surgery

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

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 was exceptional at supporting staff wellbeing. Feedback from patients to CQC was exceptionally positive about the way they were treated. Feedback from the Friends and Family test for the last 12 months provided to us by the provider was mostly positive.

This service scored 85 (out of 100) for this area. Find out what we look at when we assess this area and How we calculate these scores.

The service treated people with kindness, empathy and compassion and respected their privacy and dignity. Staff treated colleagues from other organisations with kindness and respect.

Arrangements were in place to promote patients’ privacy.

Feedback from patients to CQC was exceptionally positive about the way they were treated. National GP Patient Survey data reflected people felt listened to and were treated with care and concern. Results were comparable to national averages. Feedback from the Friends and Family Test over the past 12 months, as provided by the provider, was mostly positive. A small amount of negative feedback was about the way patients had been treated by some members of staff. The provider assured us that they acted on feedback received.

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.

The service 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 service took account of people’s strengths, abilities, aspirations, culture and unique backgrounds and protected characteristics. For example, the in-reach work carried out with the Muslim and Pakistani community for example identified barriers to healthcare. This enabled the practice to put in place plans and arrangements that supported this community to understand and engage more positively in decisions about their healthcare. We found this demonstrated exceptional help in supporting this community to express their needs and preferences and supported the practice to understand their preferences, wishes and choices. The practice was able to provide specific examples where the practice intervention had led to an increase in screening up take. We also received positive feedback from a local community leader about how patients from the community now spoke highly of their experience of being a patient at Woodstock Bower Surgery.

Patients’ personal, cultural, social, religious and equality characteristics needs were understood and met. Patient communication needs were met to enable them to be fully involved in their care.

The percentage of respondents to the GP patient survey who stated that during their last appointment they were involved as much as they wanted to be in decisions about their care and treatment was 93.5% compared to England average of 91%.

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

Staff helped patients and their carers to access advocacy and community-based services.

The percentage of respondents to the GP patient survey who stated that during their last appointment they were involved as much as they wanted to be in decisions about their care and treatment was 94% compared to England average of 91%.

The service 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. The practice operated a system of ‘total’ triage for appointments. The system ensured people with immediate needs had access to services. The duty triage doctor prioritised incoming requests based on clinical urgency, ensuring appropriate care navigation and effective appointment management. There had been significant investment in upskilling staff in the appropriate areas to ensure the right skills were available to meet demand and to prevent delays in care caused by shortages of suitably trained staff. This work involved targeted staff development and streamlining of processes to support safe, timely and effective service delivery.

Systems were in place to coordinate with reception and telephony teams to ensure efficient use of available appointments. The provider made the on-line platform available for patient/practice communication from 6.30am to 6.30pm which was over the requirements of the NHS contract.

Patient feedback about accessing appointments on the day was extremely positive.

There was a system for ensuring those requiring urgent referrals or an urgent appointment to discuss results of tests were in place. Staff we spoke with knew the process for referral to emergency support, including mental health crisis teams.

The National GP Patient Survey showed that 76% of patients described their overall experience of contacting the practice as good. This was higher than the national average of 72%.

Results were also higher than local and national averages for patients knowing what the next step would be within two days of contacting their GP practice, with 96% of patients confirming that they were.

Feedback received by CQC highlighted several positive cases of patients being able to see or speak to a clinician quickly, often on the same day. There was also a lot of positive feedback about staff attitude.

The service always cared about and promoted the wellbeing of their staff and was exceptional at supporting and enabling staff to always deliver person-centred care.

Leaders demonstrated an exceptional commitment to staff wellbeing, and staff consistently described them as “amazing”, “exceptional”, “kind” and “supportive”. Several staff proactively shared personal examples of support, reflecting strong trust in the leadership team.

Wellbeing initiatives were proactive and embedded. These included resilience training, regular breaks, access to rest areas, shared lunches, social events, and meaningful recognition through the “Employee of the Month” scheme and additional birthday annual leave.

Staff experiencing difficulties received timely emotional and practical support. Team‑building days and monthly all‑staff meetings strengthened communication and relationships.

Interactions observed on the day were warm, respectful, and collaborative, reflecting the positive culture described by staff. Leaders modelled inclusivity, kindness, and openness.

Overall, the consistent, proactive, and inclusive focus on staff wellbeing created an exceptionally positive environment where staff told us they felt valued, supported, and proud to work.