Tower Family Healthcare, Bury: patient reviews and CQC rating
Tower Family Healthcare is a GP practice in Bury with 47,995 registered patients (September 2026). In the 2026 GP Patient Survey, 67% of its patients described their overall experience as good, below the England figure of 77% (Greater Manchester: 79%). The Care Quality Commission rates it Requires Improvement overall, in a report published in November 2023. It has 23.6 full-time-equivalent qualified GPs, or 2,036 patients per GP.
Latest data: September 2026. Patient survey 2026; registered patients September 2026; appointments to August 2026.
What patients say about Tower Family Healthcare
Its best result against England is the share who had confidence and trust in the healthcare professional they saw: 95%, against 93% across England. Its weakest is the share who said the wait for their last appointment was about right: 44%, below the England figure of 69%. Of the 11 results in the table, 0 are above England and 3 below by more than the survey's margin of error, and 8 within it.
On overall experience it is 11th of the 14 practices in Bury with 50 or more responses. 48% found it easy to get through by phone (England: 57%). The overall experience result is 6 points lower than in 2025 (73%). 118 patients answered the survey (response rate 30%).
| Survey question | Tower Family Healthcare | Greater Manchester | England |
|---|---|---|---|
| Overall experience good | 67% | 79% | 77% |
| Easy to contact by phone | 48% | 63% | 57% |
| Easy to contact via the website | 35% | 61% | 58% |
| Easy to contact via the NHS App | 50% | 58% | 54% |
| Reception team helpful | 84% | 86% | 85% |
| Last contact good | 70% | 76% | 73% |
| Wait for appointment about right | 44% | 71% | 69% |
| Listened to well | 85% | 88% | 87% |
| Treated with care and concern | 86% | 87% | 86% |
| Confidence and trust in the clinician | 95% | 93% | 93% |
| Needs met | 91% | 91% | 90% |
In the Friends and Family Test for July 2026, 91% of 1,873 responses rated the practice good or very good (England: 92%).
CQC's overall rating for Tower Family Healthcare is Requires Improvement, published in November 2023. One key question is rated differently: Caring Good. Its previous overall rating was Good (December 2016).
| Key question | Rating |
|---|---|
| Safe | Requires Improvement |
| Well-led | Requires Improvement |
| Caring | Good |
| Responsive | Requires Improvement |
| Effective | Requires Improvement |
47,995 patients were registered at Tower Family Healthcare in September 2026, down 0.8% on a year earlier (England: down 1.1%).
20% of its patients are aged 65 or over, against 19% across England. With 23.6 full-time-equivalent qualified GPs, there are 2,036 patients per GP, close to the England figure of 2,171 and Greater Manchester's 2,055. The practice also has 12.0 nurses and 14.3 other clinical staff such as pharmacists and physiotherapists (full-time equivalent).
| Year | Qualified GPs (FTE) | All GPs incl. trainees (FTE) |
|---|---|---|
| August 2023 | 16.2 | 23.6 |
| August 2024 | 26.0 | 32.3 |
| August 2025 | 23.9 | 30.5 |
| August 2026 | 23.6 | 28.9 |
From June 2026 to August 2026 the practice recorded 19,691 appointments a month, or 410 per 1,000 registered patients (England: 510). 58% were face to face (England: 63%). 34% took place on the day they were booked and 6% more than 28 days after booking (England: 45% and 5%).
37% were with a GP rather than another member of the practice team. 5% of booked patients did not attend.
| Measure | Tower Family Healthcare | Greater Manchester | England |
|---|---|---|---|
| Appointments per 1,000 patients a month | 410 | 445 | 510 |
| Face to face | 58% | 66% | 63% |
| Same day as booked | 34% | 44% | 45% |
| More than 28 days after booking | 6% | 5% | 5% |
| Did not attend | 5% | 6% | 4% |
Compared with England, the practice has a higher share of patients on its registers for dementia (1.2% against 0.8%), heart failure (1.6% against 1.1%) and epilepsy (1.0% against 0.8%). The practice's patients live in areas with an average deprivation score of 22.9 (England: 21.8; higher is more deprived). Life expectancy for its patients' neighbourhoods is 81.3 years for women and 77.5 for men (England: 83.0 and 79.1).
| Condition register | Age group | Practice (2024/25) | England |
|---|---|---|---|
| Depression | 18+ yrs | 18.4% | 14.3% |
| High blood pressure | All ages | 16.4% | 15.2% |
| Diabetes | 17+ yrs | 8.3% | 7.9% |
| Asthma | 6+ yrs | 7.6% | 6.6% |
| Chronic kidney disease | 18+ yrs | 5.2% | 4.6% |
| Cancer | All ages | 4.5% | 3.8% |
| Coronary heart disease | All ages | 3.4% | 3.0% |
| Atrial fibrillation | All ages | 2.6% | 2.2% |
| Stroke and TIA | All ages | 2.4% | 1.9% |
| COPD | All ages | 2.1% | 1.9% |
| Heart failure | All ages | 1.6% | 1.1% |
| Serious mental illness | All ages | 1.2% | 1.0% |
| Dementia | All ages | 1.2% | 0.8% |
| Osteoporosis | 50+ yrs | 1.0% | 1.2% |
| Epilepsy | 18+ yrs | 1.0% | 0.8% |
| Rheumatoid arthritis | 16+ yrs | 1.0% | 0.8% |
| Peripheral arterial disease | All ages | 0.7% | 0.6% |
| Learning disability | All ages | 0.6% | 0.6% |
| Palliative care | All ages | 0.4% | 0.6% |
| Screening coverage | Period | Practice | England |
|---|---|---|---|
| Bowel cancer screening (aged 60 to 74) | 2024/25 | 74.0% | 72.9% |
| Breast cancer screening (women aged 53 to 70) | 2024/25 | 76.3% | 72.2% |
| Cervical screening (women aged 25 to 49) | 2023/24 | 70.3% | 67.5% |
| Cervical screening (women aged 50 to 64) | 2023/24 | 72.7% | 74.9% |
Tower Family Healthcare, 16 Market Street, Tottington, Bury, BL8 4AD. Phone: 01204 885106. Website: www.tottingtonmp.nhs.uk.
| Nearby practice | Distance | Overall experience good |
|---|---|---|
| Garden City Medical Centre | 1.8 km | 92% |
| Woodbank Surgery | 2.4 km | 60% |
| Mile Lane Surgery | 3.0 km | 73% |
| Dr Afzal Hussain | 3.8 km | 76% |
| Townside Surgery - Dr Cooke | 3.9 km | 72% |
- Garden City Medical Centre (92% overall experience good)
- Mile Lane Surgery (73% overall experience good)
- Peel GPs (80% overall experience good)
- Redbank Group Practice (67% overall experience good)
- Ribblesdale Medical Practice (70% overall experience good)
- Woodbank Surgery (60% overall experience good)
How do patients rate Tower Family Healthcare?
In the 2026 GP Patient Survey, 67% of patients described their overall experience of Tower Family Healthcare as good, below the England figure of 77%. 48% found it easy to get through by phone.
How many patients are registered at Tower Family Healthcare?
47,995 patients were registered in September 2026, down 0.8% on a year earlier.
What is Tower Family Healthcare's CQC rating?
Requires Improvement overall, published in November 2023.
How many GPs does Tower Family Healthcare have?
23.6 full-time-equivalent qualified GPs (33 qualified GPs by headcount), which is 2,036 patients per GP against 2,171 across England.
Are appointments at Tower Family Healthcare face to face?
58% of appointments from June 2026 to August 2026 were face to face, against 63% across England.
What is Tower Family Healthcare's phone number?
01204 885106.