Updated 14 March 2026
Swallowfield Medical Practice provides primary care services to approximately 16,000 patients under a contract with NHS England. Services are delivered from the main site, Swallowfield Medical Practice, and a branch site, Shinfield Branch Surgery. Staff work flexibly across both locations, and patients are able to access appointments at either site based on availability and preference.
Swallowfield Medical Practice is situated in a semi-rural setting and includes an onsite dispensary. Shinfield Branch Surgery is located approximately three miles from the main site and provides additional capacity to support patient consultations.
The National General Practice Profiles states that the population is made up of 82% White, 9.9% Asian, 3% Black and 3% Mixed and 1% Other. Information published by Office for Health Improvement and Disparities shows that deprivation within the practice population group is in the 10th decile (10 of 10). The lower the decile, the more deprived the practice population is relative to others. 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.
We assessed all quality statements across the safe, effective, caring, responsive and well led key questions. At this inspection we noted: The service delivered safe, effective, caring and responsive care, with patients receiving treatment aligned to best practice and reporting positive experiences of compassionate, person-centred support. Staff were appropriately trained, worked collaboratively, and systems were in place to monitor outcomes and improve access, particularly for vulnerable groups.
The service had a shared vision and culture focused on delivering high-quality, person-centred care. Leaders were committed, engaged, and worked in partnership with staff and external organisations to support service delivery and improvement.However, governance systems were not always sufficiently robust, particularly in relation to oversight of medicines management, dispensary controls, and prescription security. These gaps meant risks were not consistently identified, monitored, and mitigated.Although leaders demonstrated a willingness to act on concerns and implement improvements, the identified shortfalls in governance and oversight meant the service was rated requires improvement for being well-led.
We found breaches of regulation in relation to Regulation 17 Good Governance and have asked the provider for an action plan in response to the concerns found at this assessment.
Where relevant, further commentary is provided in the quality statements section of this report.