Quality healthcare is of extreme importance to all of us. Whether that is easily accessible dentistry services, a constructive GP visit, or being quickly and efficiently seen to at your local hospital, a healthcare service that works for you is a key priority. This can be especially important when looking to move to a new area or when considering settling down for retirement, as it’s only natural to want the best available services for you and your family’s continued health.
With the NHS under strain from COVID and many locations seeing an increase in demand, some surgeries and facilities have coped better than others. Unfortunately, this has had a knock-on effect on the quality of care provided across the board. Therefore, the Care Quality Commission (CQC) conducts regular inspections of medical facilities, assessing everything from the quality of their service to the hygiene standards of their premises. While many locations pass with flying colours, others receive poor ratings and must make improvements.
This is where Vanguard comes in. We’ve accumulated over 22 years of medical cleaning expertise, and have helped dozens of healthcare facilities pass their CQC inspections by ensuring impeccable hygiene standards. Our rigorous staff training is accredited by the British Institute of Cleaning Science (BICSc), meaning you can rest assured our processes are industry-leading and designed to keep your premises CQC-compliant.
With that aside, we’ll dive into Vanguard’s very first healthcare report, examining medical establishments all across the county of Cheshire. We’ll outline which areas have the worst-rated healthcare services as determined by the CQC, and what that might mean for residents living in the area.
Whether you’re simply curious about your area’s statistics, or more deeply concerned about your healthcare prospects, let’s delve into the 15 worst areas for healthcare in Cheshire County.
A small township just northwest of Chester, Helsby is a serene rural settlement that boasts expansive nature reserves, woodlands, and golf courses all in the span of a couple of miles. Together with its surrounding villages, the area’s healthcare could use some improvement, with 13.3% of facilities not passing their CQC inspection.
However, Helsby is one of the better locations in this list, with 6.6% of its services receiving an Outstanding rating, which means there is a mixed bag of quality across the town.
A sizeable market town near Crewe, Sandbach sees a lot of vehicle traffic resulting from close proximity to an M6 motorway exit. Beyond that, the town has a traditional British high street with beautiful, cobbled roads and all the hallmarks you would expect from a modern commercial street. However, residents may be shocked to find out that 13.7% of their nearby health services are not performing as required.
This corresponds to a total of 8 establishments that have been given a Requires Improvement rating from the CQC, which may prove detrimental to your healthcare needs.
The town of Macclesfield is just south of Manchester, and rests on the winding waterway of River Bollin. The enormous peak district lies to the east, providing easy access for residents to go hiking and increase their aerobic health. This may be critical, as health centres in the town are under par, with 14.2% of healthcare facilities requiring improvement.
This makes it a key concern for Macclesfield residents, as a total of 8 locations have been found as such, and with plenty of services still unrated, the situation could grow worse still.
One of Cheshire’s major population centres, Crewe is home to a significant railway station that serves many of the country’s travellers every day. Building upon that, the region’s industry was historically involved with railway engineering and train construction, and still contributes to that record today. Besides this, a shocking 14.2% of healthcare services in the town are rated as requiring improvement.
The town is tied with Macclesfield on this matter, but as Crewe has 5 facilities with an Outstanding rating to Macclesfield’s 1, it’s clear the railway town is also home to high quality practices.
A cathedral city and capital of Cheshire, Chester is a historic market town with a beautiful town square. Built upon a roman fortress, the city still contains remnants of the ancient architecture, including the stone walls that surround Chester’s city centre. Despite the prestigious nature of the city, it’s healthcare could use some work, with 15% of all services being found sub-par.
Chester also has 1 location that received an Inadequate rating, which is a rare mark of weakness within the city’s health system.
A relatively small village in central Cheshire, Holmes Chapel is home to a large historical viaduct that was built in the 19th century. The growing hamlet is also famous for being the birthplace of famous pop singer Harry Styles, with popular attraction ‘Harry’s wall’ etched into the viaduct itself. Healthcare is below the county’s average, however, with 15% of service locations failing to pass their inspections.
Despite this, less than a third of the area’s services have been rated, meaning we don’t know as much about their service quality as we might have preferred.
Resting on the opposite banks of the River Mersey, the twin towns of Runcorn & Widnes are just beyond the outskirts of Liverpool. They share strong transport connections with Warrington and Manchester, which has aided in the development of a strong industrial and logistical centre. What is less strong, however, is the dual town’s healthcare, with 16.2% of services requiring improvement.
Of particular concern are the 2 locations in the area that have received a rating of Inadequate, which is unusually high for such a low population centre.
Encompassing the smaller villages of Handforth and Alderly Edge, the Wilmslow area is just south of Stockport and Manchester. Like Macclesfield, it rests on the River Bollin, but also contains a section of the River Dean to the north. Despite the serene surroundings (and proximity to Manchester Airport), the area’s healthcare services leave plenty to be desired, with 16.6% requiring improvement.
Surprisingly, Wilmslow also has the highest number of Outstanding ratings in Cheshire, coming in at 8 services.
Just south of Liverpool and the Wirral, Ellesmere Port is one of Cheshire’s largest settlements. As the name suggests, the town has a sizeable maritime sector, with tourist attractions such as the National Waterways Museum and Blue Planet Aquarium commemorating the industry. In terms of healthcare, 17.1% of Ellesmere Port’s services did not pass their most recent CQC inspection, raising important concerns.
Like the twin towns to its north-east, Ellesmere Port suffers from 2 healthcare services that have been rated as Inadequate.
Not far from the Greater Manchester town of Stockport, Poynton was a coal mining town before blooming into a suburb for urban centres nearby. The small town has a picturesque park and lake that walkers can wander around on a pleasant day. While this might have a calming influence on residents, the state of healthcare certainly should not, with 18.1% of services being found sub-par.
This works out to a whopping 27 services in the area that have received a rating of Requires Improvement.
Located close to Northwich and Middlewich, Winsford is divided in half by River Weaver, which leads into a reservoir named Bottom Flash. Accordingly, the town is home to a sailing club and a lakeside caravan park which allows both visitors and residents to make the most of their natural surroundings. Medical services are struggling in the town, with 19.1% of locations not passing their CQC inspections.
There are a total of 72 healthcare services in the area that have yet to be rated, meaning the overall healthcare quality of the town cannot be determined in its entirety.
Resting on the south-eastern border of the county, Congleton is just north of Stoke-on-Trent. The area is very rural, with local nature reserves, mountainous trails, shooting ranges, and multiple golf courses all in the town’s vicinity. Their healthcare services are not as prestigious, however, with a total of 20% of services requiring important improvements.
Unlike many areas, almost half of Congleton’s services have been inspected by the CQC, giving us a clearer picture of the state of healthcare in the town.
Situated on the Wirral Peninsula, Neston is so close to Merseyside that it’s often considered part of the wider Birkenhead area. As a rather small town, nearby settlements such as Heswall, Willaston, and Fint all fall under Neston’s radius of healthcare services. Taking this into account, the area’s healthcare services are under strain, with 20.3% requiring improvement.
With this encompassing 1 location that received a rating of Inadequate, key worries will no doubt be raised for nearby residents.
A town sitting on a key confluence of the Macclesfield Canal and River Dean, Bollington also touches the westernmost boundaries of the Peak District. It has a storied history, acting as a key residence to the Earl of Chester for a period. Regardless, healthcare in this minor town could use major work, with 20.5% of all services receiving a CQC rating of Requires Improvement.
This figure equates to 15 of 73 services in the area not passing their inspection, which makes it one of the worst areas in Cheshire in terms of health care.
North of Crewe and east of Chester – Middlewich is very appropriately located in the dead centre of Cheshire. The town sees a half dozen rivers, canals, and waterways run through and around it, resulting in very rich and hydrated farmlands. Unfortunately, this does not correspond to better health outcomes, with a whopping 21.4% of healthcare services rated as Requires Improvement.
Middlewich has earned its place as the worst area for healthcare in Cheshire, with a shocking 9 of 33 services being found not up to scratch. This poor performance makes it that much more important to take greater measures to pass CQC inspections and improve the overall quality of healthcare in the town.
In order to remain objective and transparent in sourcing our data, we take our information first-hand from the Care Quality Commission (CQC) website. This allows us to search across different locations to find out the number of healthcare services that have Outstanding, Good, Requires Improvement, and Inadequate ratings. We’ll then express poorly-rated services as a percentage of all services to work out the overall quality of healthcare in that area.
It’s worth noting that some services aren’t rated yet, so these are left out of our calculations. Additionally, the UK is a highly metropolitan country, and because we cast a 5-mile radius across each area to cover all of their healthcare services, crossover between urban centres will be inevitable. For example, Leighton Hospital in Crewe will serve residents of both Crewe and Sandbach, and will be included in the radius of both areas.
