Portway Family Practice

On this page

• Overview
• Shared direction and culture
• Capable, compassionate and inclusive leaders
• Freedom to speak up
• Workforce equality, diversity and inclusion
• Governance, management and sustainability
• Partnerships and communities
• Learning, improvement and innovation

We looked for evidence that service leadership, management and governance assured high-quality, person-centred care; supported learning and innovation; and promoted an open, fair culture.

At our last assessment, we rated this key question as Good. At this assessment, the rating remains the same.

This service scored 75 (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 led by 2 GP partners and a practice manager. There was a collaborative approach to leadership within the practice and an open culture.

Leaders and staff had a shared vision and culture based on providing high quality, compassionate and patient centred healthcare, by providing the best possible outcomes, offer a wide range of services, use technology smartly, invest in their staff and to collaborate and work in partnership. They showed awareness of the challenges and changing needs of their local population. Feedback we received from staff regarding the culture at the practice which was positive, describing an open and positive working culture where everyone felt valued and supported. They told us there was a friendly team atmosphere.

The practice had a realistic strategy and supporting business plans to achieve sustainability. The leadership team were committed to working collaboratively with their Primary Care Network (PCN) and the local community to educate and achieve positive outcomes for their patient population.

The practice had appropriate systems, processes and information in place to monitor and manage current and future performance. Performance data was used to drive improvements and maintain oversight of the quality of care delivered.

The service had inclusive leaders at all levels who understood the context in which they delivered care, treatment and support and embodied the culture and values of their workforce and organisation. Leaders had the skills, knowledge, experience and credibility to lead effectively. They did so with integrity, openness and honesty.

Leaders demonstrated effective and capable leadership. For example, following the closure of a neighbouring practice in 2024, the practice successfully managed the transfer of approximately 2,000 patients within a short timeframe. To support the transition, the practice held awareness events to communicate the changes and ensure both new and existing staff were informed and engaged. Leaders also recruited additional staff promptly to meet increased demand, helping to ensure the transition was smooth, well-coordinated, and had minimal impact on patient care and service delivery. This commitment was recognised within the Integrated Care Board (ICB), with the practice manager and pharmacist being awarded as ‘practice manager and pharmacist of the year’.

Staff described feeling valued and motivated in their roles, with leaders who listened and recognised their contributions. Staff told us they felt included and supported and managers were approachable and encouraged them to share ideas or raise concerns.

The service fostered a positive culture where people felt they could speak up and their voice would be heard. The practice had established Freedom to Speak up arrangements. Staff were aware of how to raise concerns.

Leaders encouraged the reporting of incidents to identify ways in which the practice could continually improve.

The practice had clear policies and procedures accessible to all staff, for example, there was a whistleblowing, equality and diversity and duty of candour policy in place.

The service valued diversity in their workforce. They work towards an inclusive and fair culture by improving equality and equity for people who work for them.

Policies and procedures to promote diversity and equality were in place and all staff had completed equality and diversity training. Staff were supported through regular appraisals, one-to-one meetings, coaching, mentoring, and revalidation processes. Team members told us they were encouraged to develop within their roles and had access to a range of training and development opportunities. Feedback from staff indicated a positive, no-blame culture within the service, with employees feeling they were treated fairly, respectfully, and equally.

The service had clear responsibilities, roles, systems of accountability and good governance. They used these to manage and deliver good quality, sustainable care, treatment and support. They acted on the best information about risk, performance and outcomes, and share this securely with others when appropriate.

Leaders and managers supported staff, and all staff we spoke with were clear on their individual roles and responsibilities. Managers met with staff regularly to complete appraisals and performance reviews. The provider had established governance processes in place. Staff could access all required policies and procedures. Managers held regular practice meetings with staff, during which they discussed clinical concerns and emerging risks. The provider had established systems to effectively manage clinical and operational risks, while also supporting ongoing improvements in service quality and patient outcomes. Managers clearly recorded any actions arising from these meetings and ensured they shared these with staff. Staff took patient confidentiality and information security seriously.

The service understood their duty to collaborate and work in partnership, so services work seamlessly for people. They share information and learning with partners and collaborate for improvement.

A GP within the practice was the clinical director within the Primary Care Network (PCN) and leaders collaborated with practices to deliver extended access and other health promotion activities. For example, Christmas Food bank, Health and Wellbeing Initiatives, Frailty Workshops and Heart failure identification event.

The practice provided care to 2 residential care homes. We spoke with representatives from one of the care homes, who reported a positive working relationship with the practice and that the practice was committed to delivering responsive and coordinated care for their residents.

The practice continued to promote continuous improvement by acting on complaints and feedback received. At the time of our assessment, the practice had a Patient Participation Group (PPG), although meetings had been limited over the previous 12 months due to low attendance. The practice remained committed to engaging with patients and obtaining their views on service delivery. A further meeting had been scheduled to encourage greater participation and ensure patients continued to have opportunities to contribute to service development and improvement. In addition, the practice was exploring digital methods of engagement to increase accessibility and support wider participation in PPG activities, helping to ensure patient feedback continued to inform future improvements.

The service focused on continuous learning, innovation and improvement across the organisation and local system. They encouraged creative ways of delivering equality of experience, outcome and quality of life for people.

The practice had a quality improvement plan in place to drive service development, and audits were carried out regularly. Learning from events, incidents and complaints was used to inform improvements and strengthen the quality of care.

The clinical team continually reviewed clinical guidelines and carried out regular audits to ensure patients received high quality sustainable care.

The practice had a quality improvement plan in place to help drive improvements in services. For example, telephone access and the implementation of an artificial intelligence appointment system.

The practice operated as a training practice. Medical student feedback we reviewed as part of our assessment, demonstrated a positive experience during their placements. The practice was the lead practice within the PCN, with a GP appointed as clinical director. We saw that the practice worked collaboratively and in partnership with stakeholders to improve the experience of people who used the service and those within the locality.