Healthcare is one of the most important things to look for when moving or settling down, and it’s no wonder why. We all want ourselves and our families to receive the best care possible, and whether that means a smoother visit to the GP, shorter waiting times for important procedures, or family members recovering in a clean and hygienic hospital environment, a robust healthcare service is of paramount importance. Unfortunately, this isn’t always the case in facilities across the UK.
Increasing demand and lingering after-effects of the pandemic have placed strain on the NHS and other healthcare providers over recent years, meaning standards have slipped in some areas. The Care Quality Commission (CQC) is responsible for maintaining quality healthcare, conducting audits and inspections of services up and down the country. Assessing everything from facility hygiene to the quality of patient care, many locations pass their CQC audit with flying colours, but others do not and must make substantial improvements.
That’s where Vanguard comes in – we bring over two decades of medical cleaning expertise to the forefront, having assisted countless practices pass their CQC audits by ensuring improved standards of premises hygiene. Our staff training processes are endorsed by the British Institute of Cleaning Science (BICSc), giving our cleaning operatives the skills and knowledge to handle a broad spectrum of medical and commercial environments, including doctor’s offices and medical centres.
In Vanguard’s latest healthcare survey, we’ll delve into the medical services across the North West. We’ll learn which towns and cities have the worst-rated healthcare services as determined by the CQC, and what that might indicate for residents living in the area.
Healthcare services in the North West are generally rated positively, whereas an average of 14.4% facilities (or over 1 in 7) have been rated negatively. That’s a worry for local residents, with many in the region being served by practices and surgeries that require urgent improvements.
However, most of those premises (13.3%) were rated as Requires Improvement, meaning that after some critical adjustments are made to service delivery, these facilities may yet recover from those poor scores. What is more concerning, however, is the number of services (1.1%) that were rated Inadequate, which is indicative of more serious problems in the everyday running of those practices. Residents served by facilities with such a poor rating would certainly not be blamed for feeling alarmed at their long-term healthcare prospects.
Despite medical services in the North West being overwhelmingly rated positively (85.5%), very few of them (4.3%) earned the best rating of Outstanding. That implies a concerning lack of best practice across facilities in the area, as despite the majority of them scoring well, across-the-board improvements are still required for more services to earn the top marks.
Regardless of whether you’re deeply invested in the quality of your nearby healthcare services, or just curious about how your area scores, see our ranking of the North West’s worst areas for healthcare below.
A sleepy suburb just to the southwest of Preston, Longton boasts a deep religious heritage, with various churches, chapels, and priories located nearby. Encompassing sections of nearby Hutton, Penwortham, and Hesketh Bank, the healthcare services in and around Longton are well under the North West’s average, with 18.8% of facilities requiring significant improvements.
That figure breaks down to a whopping 35 services rated as Requires Improvement, and 1 service found to be Inadequate.
Only a short distance from the foot of the renowned Rivington Pike, Adlington and its neighbouring towns are largely rural. Consequently, the physical and mental benefits of living within a natural and picturesque landscape might play an important role in offsetting the area’s worsening quality of healthcare services. With 18.9% of facilities not up to scratch, Adlington residents would be well within their rights to feel concerned.
This figure could yet grow worse, due to the surrounding area having over 270 services that remain unrated, making the overall standard of care across the township largely unknown.
Situated close to Northwich and Middlewich, Winsford is split in half by the River Weaver, which eventually leads into a reservoir named Bottom Flash. Characteristically, the town is home to a sailing club and a lakeside caravan park, which allows both visitors and residents to make the most of the nearby nature. However, health services are struggling in the town, with 19.1% of locations not passing their CQC audits.
A total of 72 healthcare services in the surrounding area have not yet been rated, meaning the overall healthcare quality of the town isn’t as clear as it could be.
Just like Backburn to the north (which is both larger and more populous), Darwen is a highly industrialised town. Rather fittingly, the town is named after the River Darwen, which flows underneath the town centre – but despite this unique feature, medical care in the town is severely lacking, with 19.4% of practices found to require improvements.
That figure breaks down to a total of 19 facilities, with 1 among these receiving the dire rating of Inadequate.
Covering an area that includes Liverpool City Centre, the Knowledge Quarter, and Sefton, Merseyside’s largest settlement is also its most prestigious. From Cavern Club, the renowned home of the Beatles, to the Royal Albert Docks and the shopping hub of Liverpool ONE, the city’s healthcare services serve hundreds of thousands of patients, but is coming under strain with 19.4% of locations being found below standard.
While the city might boast 16 locations that are rated as Outstanding, that positive figure is largely offset by a whopping 77 practices and surgeries that have outright failed their CQC inspections.
Situated just beyond the border of the Lake District National Park, Kendal is an attractive destination for many due to its proximity to nearby lakes, fells and nearby tourist towns like Windermere. Of course, the town also has draws of its own, including Kendal castle and the River Kent. Unfortunately, healthcare is not one of them, with 20% of the area’s medical services failing their most recent audit.
While that breaks down to 6 services with a Requires Improvement rating, 4 locations were also given an Outstanding rating, indicating a mixed bag of quality healthcare across the area.
Perched on the south-eastern border of the North West, Congleton is just north from Stoke-on-Trent. The area is mostly rural, with local nature reserves, mountainous trails, shooting ranges, and multiple golf courses all in the town’s vicinity. However, healthcare in the area seems to be lacking, with a total of 20% of services requiring significant improvements.
Unlike some areas, almost half of Congleton’s services have been fully inspected by the CQC, giving us a clearer picture of the struggling state of healthcare in the town.
Just across the river from Liverpool, Wallasey is situated at the northern edge of the borough of Wirral. Like other close towns, Wallasey benefits from the proximity of several beaches, golf clubs, and coastal parks, which prove a popular day-trip destination in the warmer months. Despite this, the area’s healthcare has been found below expectations, with 20.3% of the town’s services requiring significant improvement.
That includes a total of 54 facilities that have been given a rating of Requires Improvement, and just 2 locations that have given the notorious Inadequate rating.
Resting on the Wirral Peninsula, Neston is so close to Merseyside that it’s often considered part of the wider Birkenhead area. Being a rather small town, other nearby settlements such as Willaston and Fint both fall under Neston’s radius of healthcare services. Taking this into account, the area’s medical services face serious problems, with 20.3% of services needing substantial improvements to their service.
With this including 1 location with an Inadequate rating, and a further 12 with a Requires Improvement rating, key concerns will no doubt be playing on the minds of locals.
Bollington is perched on a key confluence of the Macclesfield Canal and River Dean, also touching the westernmost boundaries of the Peak District. The town has a storied history, notable for acting as an important residence to the Earl of Chester for a period. Even so, healthcare in this minor town could use some major work, with 20.5% of all services receiving a CQC rating of Requires Improvement.
That figure equates to 15 of 73 services in the area not passing their most recent inspection, which makes it one of the worst areas in the region for healthcare.
As one of the largest and most populous towns in the Wirral, Birkenhead is renowned for the area’s iconic accent. Historically, the town is also known for its thriving shipbuilding industry, with local dockyards specialising in ship repair and even working on Royal Navy vessels. However, Birkenhead’s healthcare is poor, having one of the highest mortality rates for men above 65, and 21.2% of medical services being found sub-par.
That shocking statistic comes from a total of 70 nearby medical facilities that were given the rating of Requires Improvement, constituting a worrying large swathe of services in the area.
East of Chester and North of Crewe – Middlewich is very appropriately found in the very centre of Cheshire County. While the town may boast a half dozen rivers, canals, and waterways running in and around it (and rich farmlands as a result), this has unfortunately not corresponded with better health outcomes, with a whopping 21.4% of healthcare services being rated as Requires Improvement.
Such a poor performance is bound to worry residents of the town, with a shocking 9 of 33 services being found not up to scratch.
Located around halfway between Chester and Liverpool, Heswall (like much of the Wirral) used to belong to Cheshire before being moved to the Merseyside local authority in 1974. Even though Heswall is one of the most prosperous settlements in the area, the nearby healthcare services have not kept up with that trend, with a concerning 21.9% of practices performing under expectations.
While the area does contain 25 locations given the rating of Requires Improvement, Heswall earns the distinction of being the only town in Merseyside with 0 services rated as Inadequate.
On the northwestern edge of the Wirral, West Kirby and Hoylake are only a short distance away from each other. Key draws in the area include the Royal Liverpool Golf Club and the Marine Lake, a large manmade body of water that hosts sailing events and leisurely water sports. Regardless, the state of healthcare in the area is poor, with a shocking 24.6% of medical facilities failing their most recent CQC inspection.
That corresponds to a total of 15 services that require improvements, which may seem meagre compared to previous entries, but it represents a worryingly large share of medical facilities across West Kirby and Hoylake.
Two peaceful towns north of Rochdale, Bacup & Whitworth are bordered on all sides by valleys, hills, and nature reserves. Beyond the beautiful landscapes, however, the area in and around Bacup & Whitworth officially harbours the worst standard of healthcare in the North West, with the two neighbouring towns suffering from a shocking 25% of healthcare services failing their most recent CQC audit.
With 12 out of 48 total facilities given a rating of Requires Improvement, citizens of these twin towns may benefit by looking elsewhere for good quality healthcare.
Vanguard aims to remain entirely objective and transparent in how we source our data, which is retrieved directly from the official source on the Care Quality Commission (CQC) website. From there, we conduct a search of various towns and settlements across the North West to discover the number of healthcare services that were given ratings of Outstanding, Good, Requires Improvement, and Inadequate in each area. We then calculate the percentage of poorly-rated services to gain an understanding of the overall quality of healthcare in each location.
In many areas, select services haven’t been rated yet, so we exclude these from our calculations. In other locations like small hamlets, there aren’t enough rated services to ensure a good sample, so we exclude these from our list as well. Finally, to gain a full assessment of each area, we cast a 5-mile radius over the location to ensure all relevant services are caught in our net. Due to the country being a highly metropolitan country, there will naturally be some crossover between towns and cities. For example, Royal Blackburn Teaching Hospital also serve residents of Darwen and Accrington, meaning the facility is included in the healthcare radius of all three locations.
