It’s no secret that local healthcare is vital for so many across the nation. Whether that’s being seen and treated in a more efficient manner, enjoying shorter waiting lists for critical surgeries, or your elderly relatives being taken care of in a care home that’s fit for purpose, the quality of your nearby medical services are of great import. Many healthcare providers do meet and even surpass those required standards, but sadly, others are under increased pressure and fail to provide the level of care needed.
The Care Quality Commission (CQC) is an independent regulatory body, responsible for maintaining healthcare standards in the UK. They conduct audits and inspections of medical facilities across the country, including hospitals, medical centres, and other premises like dentist offices and care homes. Auditors assess a number of factors, including infection control, patient care, and practice management. While many practices do pass their audits, others are found to be lacking in one or more of these critical areas.
This is where Vanguard can help – with over two decades of medical cleaning experience, we’ve got extensive knowledge of the stringent demands of medical cleaning and the CQC standards that practices must conform to. Our cleaning team are rigorously trained, with protocols underwritten by The British Institute of Cleaning Science (BICSc), equipping each staff member with the techniques required to refresh a broad range of receptions, consulting rooms, and wards.
In Vanguard’s latest healthcare report, we’ll turn our attention to medical services across the South West. We’ll examine which towns and settlements have the worst-rated healthcare services as determined by the CQC, and discuss the potential impact for local residents.
In general, the South West of England is one of the best performing regions for healthcare in the country, with 88.4% of providers rated positively by the CQC. Of course, on the other hand, that does mean that 11.6% of services (or over 1 in 10) are rated negatively, which is no doubt a cause for concern for local residents. Despite that figure coming in relatively low compared to other regions, the prevalence of poorly rated services in the area does still signify major cracks in the region’s healthcare infrastructure.
Most poorly-rated practices are recorded as Requires Improvement (11% of total services), which means that any lapses are perhaps more minor or confined to one specific aspect of the facility. After some adjustments are made to these areas of concern, practices rated this way may yet regain a more positive rating in the future. Of significantly more concern are the select few facilities that were rated as Inadequate, and while the corresponding figures are startingly low compared to other regions, the South West’s healthcare still suffers from 0.6% of services being given that infamous rating.
On the other end of the spectrum, only 6.9% of all services earned the distinguished rating of Outstanding. Again, while that is an impressive number compared to many other regions, the Outstanding ratings make up a very small portion of the positively rated services. Most facilities are simply rated Good, implying that across the board, healthcare providers could be doing more to conform to medical best practice and improve the overall quality of healthcare in the South West.
Whether you’re concerned about the quality of your local healthcare, or you’re simply curious about how your area may rank, see our list below for the 15 worst areas for healthcare in the South West.
Trowbridge is a blissful market town located in the heartland of Wiltshire. Over the past few centuries, however, the town has grown substantially, due in no small part to the Kennet & Avon canal, which served as an important artery for coal and continues to provide a useful transport route for the town. Unfortunately, healthcare in the town is far from ideal, with 10.7% of local services requiring improvements.
That figure translates to 8 total services that have been rated negatively, compared to 4 Outstanding and 63 Good facilities.
Just down the road from our previous entry, Chippenham is perched on a winding offshoot of the River Avon. The town has a certain royal prestige, with historians believing the settlement acted as a royal villa and hunting lodge for King Alfred the Great in the 9th century. Unfortunately, healthcare in the town is far less renowned, with 12% of local healthcare services found to harbour serious problems.
That encompasses 6 services rated as Requires Improvement, out of a total 50 services that have been rated.
Sprawling around the aptly named River Exe, the cathedral city of Exeter is one of the south’s earliest and most historic settlements. In Roman Britain, the settlement served as an important home base for military operations, before developing into a thriving religious town in the Middle Ages. In recent decades, however, the city has seen a decline, and healthcare has not escaped this pitfall, with 12.5% of services being found below standards.
Despite 11 services being rated as Requires Improvement, a further 13 practices earned the rating of Outstanding, indicating a mixed bag of quality in the Exeter area.
As the largest settlement in Wiltshire, Swindon was forever transformed by the arrival of the Great Western Railway in the 1800s. Converted from a small market town to a regional railway hub, Swindon became a behemoth of railway engineering, and still boasts industry leftovers like the Railway Village and STEAM Museum to this day. Nevertheless, healthcare in the area could use serious improvements, with 12.7% of local services found below par.
That amounts to 13 services that are rated Requires Improvement, a small but significant statistic to those that are affected.
Another Wiltshire market town, Melksham rests near a ford on the River Avon. Evidence of settlement goes back to the Iron Age, with various artifacts and fragments found within the town’s vicinity. Despite that impressive history, the town remains a smaller one, and suffers serious problems in the context of local healthcare, with 12.8% of services failing their most recent CQC inspections.
That number translates to 6 services being rated as Requires Improvement, out of a total 47 services.
A resort town on the doorstep of the Cotswolds, Cheltenham is famed for its mineral springs, soothing spa hotels, and natural landscapes. If that wasn’t enough, the town draws yet more visitors through its impressive selection of cultural festivals and, of course, the world-renowned Cheltenham Racecourse. Despite the town’s prestige in health and relaxation, Cheltenham’s medical services leave much to be desired, with 13% of nearby facilities found to be lacking.
Worth noting is that of the nearby services, 278 remain unrated, meaning not even ¼ of the town’s practices have been assessed, leaving the larger state of healthcare in Cheltenham largely unknown.
Just a short distance from our previous entry, Gloucester is a major settlement in its namesake county. Connected to the River Severn by a canal, it’s perhaps surprising that the town boasts such a focus on aviation, with major aerospace manufacturers in the town playing a key role in the creation of the jet engine. Sadly, the same cannot be said for healthcare, with 13.1% of nearby facilities found below expectations.
The full breakdown includes 11 Outstanding ratings, 108 Good ratings, and 18 Requires Improvement ratings.
Situated between two neighbouring Areas Of Natural Beauty (AONB), Taunton residents enjoy such picturesque landscapes in the form of sweeping hills and a web of interconnected rivers and streams. As a medieval town, Taunton has been the site of many a historical event, ranging from ill-fated uprisings to bloody mass-trials. In any case, healthcare in the area is struggling presently, with 13.3% of nearby services failing their recent CQC audits.
That breaks down to 11 facilities that are performing poorly, compared with 72 more positively rated practices.
Positioned at the mouth of the river Teign, Teignmouth itself has served as a fishing port for most of its life. Since the Georgian era, however, the town has developed more into a seaside resort, with piers, promenades, pavilions, gardens and beaches all proving attractive to nearby holidaymakers and day-trippers. This is perhaps to the detriment of nearby healthcare, though, with 13.7% of medical services falling under required standards.
This figure encompasses 9 surgeries rated as Requires Improvement, and a further 1 practice given the infamous rating of Inadequate.
A major port city on England’s southern coast, Plymouth has played an instrumental role throughout the country’s seafaring history. From launching the English fleet to defeat the Spanish Armada, to playing host to the largest naval base in Western Europe and running regular ferries across the channel, Plymouth is truly a maritime legend. Healthcare in the area fares much worse, however, with 14.3% of nearby services found to be lacking.
Despite the 24 services rated as Requires Improvement and 1 service rated Inadequate, Plymouth is unique in that it also boasts a whopping 19 services rated Outstanding, one of the highest counts across the country.
Further inland than Bristol, Bath runs alongside the River Avon and is surrounded on three sides by the Cotswolds. The prestigious city was named after the Roman baths constructed there, and in many ways, acts as a lone urban dot amongst a sea of greenery. For these reasons, the settlement has developed a thriving tourist trade, with millions of visitors every single year. Unfortunately, healthcare has not followed that upwards trend, with 16.1% of healthcare services rated as below standards.
The healthcare services in the town include 3 Outstanding practices, 44 Good practices, and 9 Requires Improvement practices.
Two seaside towns on the Devon coast, Torquay and Paignton circle around Tor Bay, with numerous beaches, marinas, caves and coves dotted along the coastline. These draws have helped transform the area into a tourist resort, becoming further built-up with crazy golf courses, guided tours, and piers to name a few. Sadly, the same investment has not been felt in nearby healthcare settings, with 16.8% of services failing to meet expected standards.
That figure corresponds to 18 services rated as Requires Improvement, compared to just 89 positive ratings in total.
Facing Cardiff on the other side of the Bristol Channel, Weston-super-Mare makes a fine addition to the area’s seaside prestige. The town boasts two grand piers that jut out into the water, and no shortage of nearby beaches, cultural sights, and tourist attractions to boot. Despite those draws, the town’s healthcare is critically lacking, with 21.1% of nearby healthcare services failing their most recent CQC inspection.
Of those services, 17 practices were rated as Requires Improvement, with a further 2 practices given the rating of Inadequate.
Cornwall’s grandest settlement, Truro lies at the point where the streams of Kenwyn and Allen meet and converge into the larger Truro River. Accordingly, the cathedral city boasts a long history of trade through the nearby port, complemented by a since-defunct tin mining industry. However, the area’s healthcare is considered to be struggling in recent years, with 25.6% (or almost 1 in 4 services) falling under required CQC standards.
That worrying figure breaks down to 9 services rated Requires Improvement and 2 services rated Inadequate in total.
Just a short distance from our previous entry, the twin towns of Redruth & Camborne are officially the worst area for healthcare in the South West. Despite being largely rural, the two settlements are located just next to the major A30 road, signifying a major stop on the way to England’s southernmost point. As alluded to, healthcare faces serious challenges in the surrounding area, with 26.5% of local services requiring important improvements.
That number includes 11 services rated as Requires Improvement, and 2 services rated as Inadequate, compared to just 36 positively rated services.
At Vanguard, we feel that it’s important to remain transparent and objective in our reporting, to ensure both the public and healthcare professionals understand the stats presented before them.
For this reason, we always state that we retrieve our data directly from the Care Quality Commission (CQC) website, which allows us to browse healthcare services in locations across the South West, and see how many ratings of Outstanding, Good, Requires Improvement, and Inadequate are recorded. We can then calculate the percentage of poor-performing services in each town to determine the overall quality of healthcare in the area.
In most locations, a solid chunk of the local services have not yet been rated, so we exclude these unrated services from our calculations. Further to this, many smaller towns and villages contain too few rated services (40 or below) to formulate a good sample, so we also exclude these areas from our rankings. To gain a full picture of healthcare in any one location, we examine all services in a 5-mile radius, ensuring a comprehensive assessment of the area in question. Naturally, this causes some crossover between highly urban centres – for example, Clevedon hospital will no doubt serve residents of both Nailsea and Portishead, and is therefore included in the healthcare radius of all three settlements.
