Bolton Family Practice, Bolton: patient reviews and CQC rating

Bolton Family Practice is a GP practice in Bolton with 3,943 registered patients (September 2026). In the 2026 GP Patient Survey, 81% of its patients described their overall experience as good, against 77% across England (Greater Manchester: 79%). The Care Quality Commission rates it Good overall, in a report published in September 2023. It has 2.2 full-time-equivalent qualified GPs, or 1,825 patients per GP.

Latest data: September 2026. Patient survey 2026; registered patients September 2026; appointments to August 2026.

What patients say about Bolton Family Practice

Its best result against England is the share who found it easy to contact the practice using the NHS App: 64%, against 54% across England. Its weakest is the share who had confidence and trust in the healthcare professional they saw: 89%, against 93% across England. With 87 responses, none of its 11 results differs from England by more than the survey's margin of error.

On overall experience it is 21st of the 48 practices in Bolton with 50 or more responses. 65% found it easy to get through by phone (England: 57%). The overall experience result is 1 point higher than in 2025 (80%). 87 patients answered the survey (response rate 13%).

Survey questionBolton Family PracticeGreater ManchesterEngland
Overall experience good81%79%77%
Easy to contact by phone65%63%57%
Easy to contact via the website62%61%58%
Easy to contact via the NHS App64%58%54%
Reception team helpful92%86%85%
Last contact good79%76%73%
Wait for appointment about right74%71%69%
Listened to well93%88%87%
Treated with care and concern91%87%86%
Confidence and trust in the clinician89%93%93%
Needs met87%91%90%

In the Friends and Family Test for July 2026, 91% of 114 responses rated the practice good or very good (England: 92%).

CQC's overall rating for Bolton Family Practice is Good, published in September 2023. All 5 key questions are rated Good.

Key questionRating
SafeGood
Well-ledGood
CaringGood
ResponsiveGood
EffectiveGood

3,943 patients were registered at Bolton Family Practice in September 2026, up 0.8% on a year earlier (England: down 1.1%).

13% of its patients are aged 65 or over, against 19% across England. With 2.2 full-time-equivalent qualified GPs, there are 1,825 patients per GP, fewer than the England figure of 2,171 and Greater Manchester's 2,055.

YearQualified GPs (FTE)All GPs incl. trainees (FTE)
August 20231.11.1
August 20242.42.4
August 20252.02.0
August 20262.22.2

From June 2026 to August 2026 the practice recorded 1,960 appointments a month, or 497 per 1,000 registered patients (England: 510). 80% were face to face (England: 63%). 40% took place on the day they were booked and 1% more than 28 days after booking (England: 45% and 5%).

62% were with a GP rather than another member of the practice team. 11% of booked patients did not attend.

MeasureBolton Family PracticeGreater ManchesterEngland
Appointments per 1,000 patients a month497445510
Face to face80%66%63%
Same day as booked40%44%45%
More than 28 days after booking1%5%5%
Did not attend11%6%4%

Compared with England, the practice has a higher share of patients on its registers for diabetes (12.5% against 7.9%) and COPD (2.6% against 1.9%). It has a lower share for dementia (0.3% against 0.8%), cancer (1.7% against 3.8%) and atrial fibrillation (1.1% against 2.2%). The practice's patients live in areas with an average deprivation score of 44.6 (England: 21.8; higher is more deprived).

Life expectancy for its patients' neighbourhoods is 79.4 years for women and 74.3 for men (England: 83.0 and 79.1).

Condition registerAge groupPractice (2024/25)England
High blood pressureAll ages15.6%15.2%
Diabetes17+ yrs12.5%7.9%
Depression18+ yrs12.2%14.3%
Asthma6+ yrs6.9%6.6%
Chronic kidney disease18+ yrs5.2%4.6%
Coronary heart diseaseAll ages3.0%3.0%
COPDAll ages2.6%1.9%
CancerAll ages1.7%3.8%
Stroke and TIAAll ages1.5%1.9%
Serious mental illnessAll ages1.5%1.0%
Atrial fibrillationAll ages1.1%2.2%
Osteoporosis50+ yrs1.0%1.2%
Heart failureAll ages0.9%1.1%
Learning disabilityAll ages0.8%0.6%
Rheumatoid arthritis16+ yrs0.6%0.8%
Epilepsy18+ yrs0.6%0.8%
Peripheral arterial diseaseAll ages0.5%0.6%
Palliative careAll ages0.4%0.6%
DementiaAll ages0.3%0.8%
Screening coveragePeriodPracticeEngland
Bowel cancer screening (aged 60 to 74)2024/2553.1%72.9%
Breast cancer screening (women aged 53 to 70)2024/2561.5%72.2%
Cervical screening (women aged 25 to 49)2023/2452.5%67.5%
Cervical screening (women aged 50 to 64)2023/2459.6%74.9%

65% of the practice's patients live in the BL3 postcode district, followed by BL1 (17%), BL4 (8%) and BL2 (7%). 99% live in Bolton, the council area the practice is in.

Postcode districtRegistered patientsShare
BL32,58965%
BL165717%
BL43238%
BL22757%
BL6521%
BL5491%

Bolton Family Practice, 21 Rupert Street, Bolton, BL3 6RN. Phone: 01204 462141.

Nearby practiceDistanceOverall experience good
Great Lever One0.0 km72%
Bolton Medical Centre0.1 km81%
Swan Lane Medical Centre0.7 km81%
Beehive Surgery0.9 km69%
Deane Medical Centre1.0 km79%

How do patients rate Bolton Family Practice?

In the 2026 GP Patient Survey, 81% of patients described their overall experience of Bolton Family Practice as good, against 77% across England. 65% found it easy to get through by phone.

How many patients are registered at Bolton Family Practice?

3,943 patients were registered in September 2026, up 0.8% on a year earlier.

What is Bolton Family Practice's CQC rating?

Good overall, published in September 2023.

How many GPs does Bolton Family Practice have?

2.2 full-time-equivalent qualified GPs (5 qualified GPs by headcount), which is 1,825 patients per GP against 2,171 across England.

Are appointments at Bolton Family Practice face to face?

80% of appointments from June 2026 to August 2026 were face to face, against 63% across England.

What is Bolton Family Practice's phone number?

01204 462141.

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Cite this page

<a href="https://localgps.co.uk/bolton/bolton-family-practice">https://localgps.co.uk/bolton/bolton-family-practice</a>