Church Lane Surgery

On this page

• Overview
• Person-centred Care
• Care provision, Integration and continuity
• Providing Information
• Listening to and involving people
• Equity in access
• Equity in experiences and outcomes
• Planning for the future

We looked for evidence the service met people’s needs, and staff treated people equally and without discrimination. 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.

We did not look at Person-centred Care during this assessment. The score for this quality statement is based on the previous rating for Responsive.

We did not look at Care provision, Integration and continuity during this assessment. The score for this quality statement is based on the previous rating for Responsive.

We did not look at Providing Information during this assessment. The score for this quality statement is based on the previous rating for Responsive.

We did not look at Listening to and involving people during this assessment. The score for this quality statement is based on the previous rating for Responsive.

Church Lane Surgery made sure people could access the care, support, and treatment they needed when they needed it.

The main surgery was open from 8.00am to 6:00pm Monday, Tuesday, and Friday and, on Wednesday and Thursday, from 7:00am to 6:00pm.

Helperby branch practice was open Monday to Friday, 8:30am to 12:30pm, unless there was no clinician onsite and then it opened 10:30am to 12:30pm for prescription collections.

On Wednesday and Thursday appointments were available from 7:00am at Church Lane Surgery with GPs, Health Care Associates, and the First Contact Physiotherapist as part of their enhanced access provision . This was especially helpful for full-time workers and kept appointments local for them.

The provider operated a mixture of urgent and pre-bookable appointments and home visits were available at the discretion of a GP for those patients who could not attend the surgery, thereby ensuring their continuity of care. Out of hours and weekend appointments were available as part of the extended access service at three local sites in Ripon, Knaresborough, and Harrogate.

Patient feedback to the CQC regarding access to services was predominantly positive. Patients told us they found it easy to obtain appointments and received prompt responses to messages and online triage submissions. Several patients described receiving call-backs within hours and reported that urgent concerns were dealt with quickly. Patients also valued the availability of extended-hours appointments, telephone consultations, and access to a branch surgery. While one patient commented that routine appointments could sometimes be scheduled some way in advance, they also advised that urgent appointments were usually available when needed. Overall, patients described the practice as responsive and accessible.

This positive feedback was consistent with the results of the 2025 and 2026 National GP Patient Surveys which showed that the surgery performed significantly better than the national average in a number of areas and that people could access medical care when they needed it and in a way that suited their needs, be that by telephone, in person or through the surgery website.

For example, in the 2026 survey 84% of respondents to the survey described their overall experience of the surgery as being good, (as compared to a national average of 77%) and 87% of respondents described their overall experience of contacting the surgery as good, (as compared to a national average of 73%).

We saw that 77% of respondents also stated that they found it easy to get through to the surgery by phone (as compared to a national average of 57%) and 79% of respondents stated that they found it easy to contact the surgery using their website (as compared to a national average of 58%).

The same survey reported that 64% of respondents stated that they were offered a choice of time or day when they last tried to make an appointment, (compared to a national average of 59%) , while 72% of respondents stated that they waited about the right amount of time for their last GP appointment, (compared to a national average of 71%).

Accessibility at both sites was also noted to be good during our visit. Treatment rooms and consultation rooms were located at ground floor level and an automatic door was in place at the entrance. Accessible parking was also available on site at Church Lane and a hearing loop was available at both reception desks.

Staff and leaders at Church Lane Surgery actively listened to information about people who were most likely to experience inequality in experience or outcomes. They tailored their care, support, and treatment in response to this.

Staff treated people equally and without discrimination. Leaders proactively sought ways to address any barriers to improving people’s experience and worked with local services, including within the voluntary sector, to address any local health inequalities.

Staff understood the importance of providing an inclusive approach to care and made adjustments to support equity in people’s experience and outcomes.

Staff followed processes to ensure people could register at the practice, including those in vulnerable circumstances such as homeless people and Travellers. In the 3 months prior to our visit, no one had been refused registration at the practice, on the grounds of vulnerable circumstances.

Staff used systems to capture and review feedback from people who used the practice, and during our assessment, we heard how compliments were monitored and shared via the surgery’s newsletter and how learning from complaints and significant events was shared with staff.

The practice was an Armed Forces Veteran Friendly Accredited GP practice. This meant that there was a clinical lead for veteran health who undertook regular training to better understand the needs of veterans and support veterans to access dedicated health services.

It was also a Safe Surgery which means that patients within their practice area who do not have a proof of id or address can still register and the practice does not ask for immigration documentation.

In addition, the surgery is a LGBTQ+ Friendly practice, committed to improving access to and experiences of healthcare for LGBTQ+ people in the local community. This means the surgery has a Lead GP for LGBTQ+ patients and that staff are actively working to improve their understanding of issues facing LGBTQ+ patients and positively support them in accessing the care they need.

We did not look at Planning for the future during this assessment. The score for this quality statement is based on the previous rating for Responsive.