Newcastle hospitals chief says return of Care Quality Commission inspectors will be 'hopefully soon'

An exterior picture of the Freeman Hospital in Newcastle Upon Tyne.
-Credit:Iain Buist/Newcastle Chronicle


Health bosses running Newcastle's hospitals are in "active dialogue" about when inspectors will return.

Last January inspectors from the Care Quality Commission published a highly critical report and rated the Newcastle Hospitals NHS Trust - which runs the Freeman and Royal Victoria Infirmary hospitals - as requires improvement. Inspectors highlighted a range of issues including bullying complaints, concerns for patient safety, and a “significant deterioration” in leadership.

Sir Paul Ennals, interim chair of the board at both the Newcastle and Northumbria Healthcare NHS Trusts, said in a report to a meeting last week that planning was well underway for the return of inspectors. He said: "We have been lifting our sights above the horizon to plan for the period – hopefully soon –when the Care Quality Commission (CQC) returns and we achieve a higher rating.

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"Our plans for the future then become ambitious and exciting, both within our own boundaries as a Trust and alongside our colleague trusts in the Great North Healthcare Alliance."

The GNHA is a new grouping including the Newcastle and Northumbria trusts and their counterparts in Gateshead and North Cumbria. The idea is to find shared ways of working and to streamline "patient pathways" in the region.

Since the inspection results were published, the trust's bosses have spoken of working hard to correct the issues raised by inspectors - and last autumn the regulator acknowledged improvements and removed a series of restrictions that had been put in place. At a previous meeting of the board late last year, the board discussed how the CQC inspectors were expected to return early in 2025.

A picture of Sir James Mackey, Chief Executive of Newcastle Hospitals sitting at a desk.
Sir James Mackey, Chief Executive of Newcastle Hospitals. -Credit:Iain Buist/Newcastle Chronicle

However, at the time directors including chief executive Sir James Mackey said "due to the significant improvements made within the organisation [here] then re-inspection may not be seen as an urgent priority".

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The trust has made a range of management changes since inspectors visited - including Sir James taking over as chief executive at the beginning of 2024. The prestigious Freeman Hospital cardiothoracic surgery unit also came in for specific criticism, and a new code of conduct has been implemented there.

The CQC does not comment publicly on future inspection dates. The regulator itself has "lost its way" the organisation's own new chief executive said this week. Speaking to the Sunday Times, Sir Julian Hartley said the culture at the CQC had been poor and he stressed “how vital it is to have a positive, open culture and psychological safety within any health and care organisation”.

He said he is adopting a “truth and reconciliation” approach to turn the regulator’s fortunes around, including writing to all staff asking for feedback, and he also wants to appoint four new chief inspectors – one each for hospitals, social care, GPs and mental health – while giving patients a bigger voice.