The NHS Friends and Family Test

We want you to have the best possible care experience from The Cranborne Practice.  The NHS Friends and Family Test (FFT) gathers patient feedback so we may review our service continually.

The FFT allows our patients, carers, and loved ones to leave feedback on their care and treatment.  Patients are asked to consider: "Thinking about your most recent visit to our Practice, overall, how was your experience?"

Please tell us what you think about the care or treatment you have received by using our Friends and Family Test Feedback Form>>  Note this is for feedback only and not enquiries.

This form has been developed based on NHS national guidance on FFT feedback to help GP Practices improve patient experience.  Answers can be ranked from "very good" to "very poor", and there is an opportunity to explain the score given to us by adding comments.  This is important because we can only know what we do well and how we could do better if you let us know.  FFT feedback is regularly reviewed by the Practice team and discussed with our patient Participation Group members. 

NHS Digital in England regularly collects data on GP appointments to improve healthcare delivery and planning. The information collected includes details like the number of appointments, the healthcare professional carrying them out, and the mode of delivery (e.g., face-to face, telephone).

Here’s a snapshot of Practice performance in January:

• Our registered patient list size in January was 13,157
• We held 11,360 appointments.
• Of these:
  • 6,201 (54.6%) were with GPs
  • 5,159 were with other healthcare professionals
  • 5,297 (85.4%) of GP appointments were conducted within 24 hours of the patient contacting the Practice.

As a comparison, in the same month, 32,981,523 (nearly 33 million) GP appointments were recorded in England. The percentage of GP appointments recorded as being carried out within 24 hours across England is 29%.

While we are pleased that this appointment data compares very positively to the national average, we are always keen to learn patient feedback on your experience of the care or treatment you receive when we see you. The NHS Friends and Family Test (FFT) gathers patient feedback so we may review our service continually. This is a vital feedback tool supporting the fundamental principle that people who use NHS services should be able to provide feedback on their experience.

Over the six months to the end of February 2025, the Practice received 423 FFT responses. From these results, we learned that 98.3% of these respondents said their recent experience visiting the Practice was Good or Very Good.

We received lots of positive feedback about the professionalism and friendliness of the staff, being listened to, access to same-day appointments, and the timeliness of being seen. Several patients suggested improvements related to the online appointment release time of 7 am and the waiting room environment, which we are reviewing with our Patient Participation Group.

Here's a summary and cross section of comments from patients over this six month period.

“The reception team are always brilliant and managed to get a same day appointment due to the seriousness of my mother’s condition.  Dr Jackson couldn’t have been more thorough and so lovely with my 90 year old mother making her relaxed over situation.”

“I was given the time to explain what was wrong and [the doctor] listened I left feeling confident that her assessment of me was good.”

“Friendly and caring nurse who was happy to explain the procedure.  Needed to make a further appointment and the receptionist was equally as nice and accommodating.”

"Friendly and caring nurse who was happy to explain the procedure.
Needed to make a further appointment and the receptionist was equally as nice and accommodating."

“Always a top class service.  All the Receptionists, Nurses and Doctors are very kind and extremely  professional.  I cannot speak highly enough of the  service that I have received from Lake Road Surgery over the last 20+ years”.

“I called at 8am.  I was put in a queue (13th), however, was given the option to be called back while not losing my queue number.  I was called back after 5 minutes and given a 9:20 appointment with a nurse.  I was seen at 9:25.”

“Everyone friendly, polite, and helpfully reassuring.  Wish you had some nice background music though in the waiting room.”

“Receptionist very helpful with changing name.  Got there early and was seen early.  The doctor was warm and kind.  Put me at ease.”

“I have only praise for the Cranborne surgery, the service, considering the number of patients registered with the practice, is extremely good & they are a very caring team from receptionists, nurses & wonderful doctors.”

“After only living in Dorset for 3 months I feel genuinely cared for and valued as a patient, not just a number.  Thank You and keep up the good work.”

“What stops me from giving ‘very good’ as the response was having to get up before 7am to get online appointment.”

“I understand how difficult it can be to be seen by a GP these days so was very grateful to get seen as a guest despite not being registered at this clinic.  The doctor was very nice and quickly proscribed medicine to help!”

“Had a blood test booked at 11.30.  We arrived at 11.29 and had the test & left by 11.34!  The nurse who took the blood was excellent at his job, polite, precise & very efficient.”

“Always able to see or speak to a doctor!  Every doctor health care worker or receptionist gives you time and listens!  Very lucky to have lake road team etc as our doctors!”

The Cranborne Practice, including Lake Road Surgery, is one of Dorset's highest scoring GP practices, achieving a 96% overall experience score in this year’s survey.

We care for over 12,900 patients, many with complex health needs. We are a Primary Care provider, not a commercial business. However, when the NHS is under immense pressure and patient demand is never higher, our satisfaction rate of 96% exceeds many private companies, such as banks and major retailers, who rely on customer service to maintain market share and make it one of their key selling points.

To our fantastic team, well done and thank you! And thanks to our Patient Participation Group members who help us shape our service to support, assist, treat, and care for the communities of Cranborne, Verwood, and the surrounding area.

Working alongside practice teams, our Patient Participation Group (PPG) members get involved in a variety of activities. As well as providing feedback on our services the PPG provides help to get information out to the wider patient population and work on projects which bring health and wellbeing benefits to their fellow patients.

Find out more about our PPG and how to join here>>