GP practices in Black Country: access, ratings and patient survey

Black Country covers 168 GP practices with 1,318,364 registered patients (September 2026). 74% of patients described their overall experience as good in the 2026 GP Patient Survey, the 32nd highest of 36 ICBs (England: 77%). There are 2,193 patients per qualified GP, against 2,171 across England.

Latest data: September 2026. Registered patients September 2026; GP Patient Survey 2026.

Survey questionBlack CountryEngland
Overall experience good74%77%
Easy to contact by phone53%57%
Easy to contact via the website54%58%
Easy to contact via the NHS App54%54%
Reception team helpful81%85%
Last contact good68%73%
Wait for appointment about right65%69%
Listened to well85%87%
Treated with care and concern84%86%
Confidence and trust in the clinician92%93%
Needs met89%90%

There are 2,193 registered patients per full-time-equivalent qualified GP in Black Country, close to England's 2,171. Practices recorded 561 appointments a month per 1,000 patients (England: 510), 64% of them face to face. 51% of appointments took place on the day they were booked (England: 45%). 17% of registered patients are aged 65 or over (England: 19%).

MeasureBlack CountryEngland
Patients per qualified GP2,1932,171
Appointments per 1,000 patients a month561510
Face-to-face appointments64%63%
Same day as booked51%45%
Did not attend5%4%
Patients aged 65 or over17%19%

Patients per qualified GP by council area, for practices located in each.

Council areaPracticesRegistered patientsPatients per GPSame-day appointments
Wolverhampton31303,7852,32855%
Sandwell45352,1372,21053%
Dudley43351,1382,15751%
Walsall50310,5512,12646%
Birmingham1561,390,5241,96649%

Among practices with at least 100 survey responses, Newbridge Surgery has the highest share of patients rating their overall experience good (94%) and Swanpool Medical Centre the lowest (44%).

PracticeTownOverall experience goodResponses
Newbridge SurgeryWolverhampton94%109
Dr VK DewanWest Bromwich94%114
Penn SurgeryWolverhampton91%119
Bloxwich Medical PracticeWalsall91%111
Chapel Street SurgeryWalsall91%117
Northgate Medical CentreWalsall91%114
Rangeways Road SurgeryKingswinford90%112
Northway Medical CentreDudley90%109
Halesowen Health CentreBirmingham90%111
Quincy Rise SurgeryBrierley Hill89%117
Feldon Lane PracticeHalesowen65%128
The Limes Medical CentreStourbridge60%103
Pelsall Village SurgeryWalsall58%112
The Smethwick Medical CentreSmethwick57%125
Great Bridge Partnership for HealthTipton56%115
Stone Cross Medical CentreWest Bromwich53%101
St John's Medical CentreWalsall50%108
Scott Arms Medical CentreBirmingham50%101
Black Country Family PracticeTipton49%115
Swanpool Medical CentreTipton44%105

Relative to England, the register furthest above England's rate at practices in Black Country is palliative care (0.9% against 0.6%), and the furthest below is cancer (3.2% against 3.8%).

Condition registerAge groupBlack Country (2024/25)EnglandPatients on register
High blood pressureAll ages16.2%15.2%215,005
Depression18+ yrs14.8%14.3%152,539
Diabetes17+ yrs10.0%7.9%104,753
Asthma6+ yrs6.6%6.6%81,596
Chronic kidney disease18+ yrs5.5%4.6%56,613
Coronary heart diseaseAll ages3.5%3.0%46,524
CancerAll ages3.2%3.8%43,001
Atrial fibrillationAll ages2.1%2.2%27,986
COPDAll ages2.1%1.9%27,394
Stroke and TIAAll ages1.8%1.9%23,554
Heart failureAll ages1.2%1.1%15,286
Osteoporosis50+ yrs1.1%1.2%5,051
Serious mental illnessAll ages1.0%1.0%13,417
Epilepsy18+ yrs0.9%0.8%9,419
Rheumatoid arthritis16+ yrs0.9%0.8%9,708
Palliative careAll ages0.9%0.6%11,851
DementiaAll ages0.7%0.8%9,930
Learning disabilityAll ages0.6%0.6%8,154
Peripheral arterial diseaseAll ages0.5%0.6%7,102

How many GP practices are in Black Country?

168, with 1,318,364 registered patients in September 2026.

How do patients rate GP practices in Black Country?

74% described their overall experience as good in the 2026 GP Patient Survey, the 32nd highest of 36 ICBs.

How many patients are there per GP in Black Country?

2,193 per full-time-equivalent qualified GP, against 2,171 across England.

What share of GP appointments in Black Country are face to face?

64%, against 63% across England.

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Cite this page

<a href="https://localgps.co.uk/icb/black-country">https://localgps.co.uk/icb/black-country</a>