• Doctor
  • GP practice

Tinkers Lane Surgery

Overall: Good read more about inspection ratings

The Tinkers Lane Partnership, Tinker's Lane, Wootton Bassett, Swindon, Wiltshire, SN4 7AT (01793) 852131

Provided and run by:
Tinkers Lane Surgery

Latest inspection summary

On this page

Background to this inspection

Updated 10 March 2020

Tinkers Lane Surgery is a GP practice located in Royal Wotton Bassett, a town and civil Parish in Wiltshire. It is one of 47 practices within the Wiltshire Clinical Commissioning Group (CCG) area and has around 8,300 patients.

The practice is based in a purpose-built building with all patient services being located on the ground floor. There are eight consulting rooms, five treatment rooms and waiting rooms spread over the ground and first floors. There is a patient lift and a toilet with access for people with disabilities. There is a self-check-in appointments system and the main waiting room contains a plasma screen that relays NHS health information.

The practice is registered to provide the following regulated activities:

  • Diagnostic and screening procedures;
  • Family planning;
  • Maternity and midwifery services;
  • Surgical procedures;
  • Treatment of disease, disorder or injury.

The practice provides a number of services and clinics for its patients including childhood immunisations, family planning, minor surgery and a range of health lifestyle management and advice including asthma management, diabetes, heart disease and high blood pressure management. The practice delivers some services in partnership with other GP practices in Wiltshire, such as care to the elderly and some out of hours appointments.

Data available shows a measure of deprivation in the local area recorded a score of 8, on a scale of 1-10 where a higher score indicates a less deprived area. (Note that the circumstances and lifestyles of the people living in an area affect its deprivation score. Not everyone living in a deprived area is deprived and not all deprived people live in deprived areas). The area the practice serves has relatively low numbers of patients from different cultural backgrounds. 96% of the practice population describes itself as white British. Average male and female life expectancy for patients at the practice is 80 years and 83 years respectively, which is broadly in line with the national average of 79 and 83 years respectively.

There are currently two GP partners (both male) and five salaried GPs (four female, one male). They are supported by a physician's associate. Practice staff defined a physician's associate as someone equivalent in training and experience to an ST2. An ST2 is a doctor in their second year of speciality training. The clinical team is completed by a lead nurse, five practice nurses, two triage nurses, two healthcare assistants and an advanced nurse practitioner. The non-clinical team perform administrative and receptionist roles, and are led by a practice manager.

Tinkers Lane Surgery is open from 7.30am to 6.15pm, on Monday, 8.30am to 6.15pm on Tuesday, Thursday and Friday and 7.30 to 8.15pm on Wednesdays. On Tuesday the practice closed from 1pm to 2pm to allow a staff meeting and on every third Friday the practice opened until 8.15pm. The practice works in partnership with other local practices to provide additional access to GP appointments on weekday evenings up to 8pm and at weekends.

The practice has opted out of providing a full Out of Hours service to its own patients. Patients can access an Out of Hours GP service by calling NHS 111. Information about how to contact the out of hours service was available in the waiting area and on the practice website.

The practice has a General Medical Services contract with NHS England (a locally agreed contract negotiated between NHS England and the practice).

The practice provides services from the following site:

Tinker’s Lane Surgery,

Tinker's Lane,

Wootton Bassett,

Swindon,

Wiltshire,

SN4 7AT

The practice has a website containing further information. It can be found here:

www.TinkersLaneSurgery.nhs.uk

Overall inspection

Good

Updated 10 March 2020

This practice is rated as Good overall. (Previously inspected on 10 December 2018 – rated Good overall with Requires Improvement for Effective services).

The key question at this inspection (and rating) is:

Are services Effective? – Good

We carried out an announced focused inspection at Tinkers Lane Surgery on 8 January 2020, to confirm that the practice had carried out their plan to meet the legal requirements in relation to the breach in Regulation 12 HSCA (RA) Regulations 2014: Safe care and treatment.

During this inspection we reviewed areas where the provider must and should make improvements, identified in our previous inspection (10 December 2018) and our key lines of enquiry for ‘Effective’ care. This report and supporting Evidence Tables cover our findings in relation to these.

We based our judgement of the quality of care at this service on a combination of:

  • What we found when we inspected
  • Information from our ongoing monitoring of data about services and
  • Information from the provider, patients, the public and other organisations.

The full comprehensive report on the December 2018 inspection can be found by selecting the ‘all reports’ link for Tinkers Lane Surgery on our website at

At the last inspection in December 2018 we rated the practice as requires improvement for providing effective services because:

  • The provider was unable to provide evidence to demonstrate that a clinician was always appropriately assessing or reviewing patients with a long-term condition and potential increased health risks, prior to excepting them.

We have continued to rate this practice as good overall.

We found that the provider had satisfactorily addressed these areas. The practice is rated as good for providing effective services because:

  • We saw documentary evidence and spoke to staff to confirm that a clinician had assessed all patients with increased risks prior to excepting them.

In addition, we saw the practice had acted on the shoulds identified at the last inspection.

  • We saw that learning points from significant events and complaints were shared with all staff, including those unable to attend meetings where they were discussed.
  • Medicines (other than those stored in a fridge and emergency medicines), were kept in an orderly manner to ensure older medicines were used first.
  • The practice policy on staff references met the standards set out in recognised guidance.
  • There was a written succession plan for key staff.

There were areas where the provider should make improvements:

  • Continue to monitor cervical smear screening to meet Public Health England screening rates.
  • Continue to monitor and lower exception reporting rates for patients with long-term conditions and patients experiencing mental health issues.

Please refer to the detailed report and the evidence tables for further information.

Dr Rosie Benneyworth BM BS BMedSci MRCGP

Chief Inspector of Primary Medical Services and Integrated Care