- NHS hospital
The Ipswich Hospital
Assessment report published 18 February 2026
Contents
Ratings - Urgent and emergency services
Our view of the service
East Suffolk and North Essex NHS Foundation Trust was formed 1 July 2018 following the merger of Colchester Hospital University Foundation Trust and Ipswich Hospital NHS Trust. They provide hospital and community health services to almost 1 million people and are the largest NHS organisation in East Anglia, employing more than 12,000 staff. Emergency care is delivered at the Colchester and Ipswich sites.
The Urgent and Emergency department (UEC) at Ipswich Hospital consists of an adult emergency department with majors and minor’s cubicles, a resuscitation room, an ambulatory emergency care unit and paediatric emergency department. The department is open 24 hours a day,7 days a week.
We previously inspected in 2020 and found 6 breaches of regulations relating to safe care and treatment, staffing and good governance. We carried out an assessment of the urgent and emergency care on 23 and 24 September 2025. This was a responsive assessment. We reviewed 19 quality statements across safe, responsive and well-led. The service had improvements to make to ensure safe care and treatment and that good governance processes are being followed.
During our assessment we found concerns which resulted in a breach of regulation in which we served a warning notice. We found breaches in Safe Care and Treatment and Good Governance.
The ratings for safe, responsive and well-led remained requires improvement. Due to the continued pressure, demand and acuity on the department leaders and staff were not always able to deliver good care and keep people safe.
Governance and risk management was not at a sufficient standard to manage the areas of risk identified specifically in relation to missed clinical observations and managing those patients at risk of deterioration. The service did not always monitor the outcomes of patients to ensure equitable care experience and outcomes. Lessons had not always been learnt from our last assessment.
Staff and leaders did work well together and there was a positive learning culture. Staff were supported by their leaders and were able to speak up and raise concerns. Staff were proud to work in the department and staff turnover was low.
You can find more details of our concerns in the evidence category findings. In instances where CQC has decided to take civil or criminal enforcement action against a provider, we will publish this information on our website after any representations and/or appeals have been concluded.
People's experience of this service
Patients and their family members we spoke with were positive about the staff caring for them. Patients told us staff treated them with kindness and provided good care and treatment. Patients said they did not feel anxious about raising concerns and felt they were listened to. However, communication around wait times and potential treatment details was not always clear. People had access to nutrition and hydration and supported if they had additional needs. During this assessment we carried out a Short Observation Framework (SOFI). SOFI is a tool used by our inspectors to capture the experiences of people who use services who may not be able to express this for themselves. We observed positive interaction between people and staff.