During an assessment under our new approach
Date of Assessment: 11 June 2026. South Saxon House Surgery is a GP practice and delivers services to approximately 3,454 people under a contract held with NHS England. According to the latest available data, the ethnic make-up of the service area is approximately 91.9% White, 2.6% Asian, 2.8% Mixed, 1.3% Black and 1.4% Other. Information published by the Office for Health Improvement and Disparities shows deprivation within the service population group is in the 3rd decile (3 of 10). The lower the decile, the more deprived the service population is relative to others.
This was a focused assessment. We undertook this assessment due to the length of time since our last assessment. We assessed 10 quality statements from across all 5 key questions. This assessment considered the demographics of the people using the service, the context the service was working within and how this impacted service delivery. Where relevant, further commentary is provided in the quality statements section of this report.
The service had contracts in place to ensure the premises were well maintained. However, the service did not always detect and control potential risks in the care environment. They did not always make sure equipment, facilities and technology supported the delivery of safe care. The service did not have a service risk register to proactively identify, monitor and mitigate all risks.
The service had a designated lead for infection, prevention and control (IPC) however there were gaps identified in their infection control processes.
There were enough qualified, skilled and experienced staff, who received effective support, supervision and development. However, not all staff were up to date with training requirements and gaps were identified in some recruitment documentation and staff immunisation records.
Staff supported people to live healthier lives, monitoring their care and treatment to ensure they received positive and consistent outcomes.
Staff treated people with kindness, empathy and compassion, and respected their privacy and dignity.
People could access care, treatment and support when they needed it.
Leaders and staff were alert to discrimination and inequality that could disadvantage groups of people who used the service and sought ways to address any barriers.
Staff understood their individual roles and responsibilities. Leaders accounted for their actions, behaviours and performance of staff. However, there were gaps in documentation and oversight which limited assurance of governance processes. This included a lack of documentation to support environmental and equipment cleaning, incomplete risk assessments, lack of oversight of staff training and gaps in recruitment documentation.
Following the onsite visit, the service updated staff records and the staff training matrix and implemented actions to strengthen governance, documentation and risk management, providing improved oversight and assurance.