Dudley · Compare
Steppingstones Medical Practice vs Limestone Surgery
Two GP practices in the same primary care network, a short way apart. Side by side, with the margin of error on every figure.
Can the survey tell them apart?
Steppingstones Medical Practice and Limestone Surgery cannot be told apart on the Practice Grade. The likely ranges overlap, so the data does not show that one is ahead of the other, whatever the two numbers are.
Side by side
| Measure | Steppingstones Medical PracticeDY1 1RT | Limestone SurgeryDY1 1RN |
|---|---|---|
| Practice Grade (the 2026 GP Patient Survey and NHS appointment and phone data) | ||
| Practice Grade | 76.2likely range 68.0 to 82.7109 survey answers | 74.8likely range 71.0 to 78.1134 survey answers |
| Label (against the England average) | Cannot be told apart from the England average | No label |
| Patients who describe the practice as good | 72.5%likely range 60.9% to 81.7%, 109 answers | 70.3%likely range 65.3% to 74.8%, 134 answers |
| Access (mean of the two below) | 84.8%likely range 81.1% to 87.7% | 85.1%likely range 80.2% to 88.7% |
| Appointments within two weeks of booking | 93.7%likely range 88.9% to 96.5%, 2,533 appointments | 95.2%likely range 89.6% to 97.9%, 1,748 appointments |
| Calls answered by the practice | 75.8%likely range 70.1% to 80.8%, 5,076 calls | 75.0%likely range 66.9% to 81.6%, 2,736 calls |
| More survey questions (not part of the grade) | ||
| Getting through on the phone | 55.9%likely range 43.8% to 67.3%, 104 answers | 60.8%likely range 55.5% to 65.9%, 128 answers |
| Reception and admin team | 87.4%likely range 77.3% to 93.4%, 105 answers | 85.2%likely range 81.0% to 88.7%, 125 answers |
| Having a preferred professional | 36.0%likely range 25.6% to 48.0%, 108 answers | 31.1%likely range 26.4% to 36.2%, 132 answers |
| Seeing your preferred professional | 41.6%likely range 24.7% to 60.6%, 42 answers | 40.1%likely range 31.6% to 49.2%, 46 answers |
| Knowing the next step | 79.1%likely range 67.4% to 87.4%, 99 answers | 76.1%likely range 71.2% to 80.5%, 123 answers |
| Contacting the practice | 71.2%likely range 59.3% to 80.8%, 104 answers | 76.4%likely range 71.5% to 80.6%, 127 answers |
| Wait for an appointment | 72.1%likely range 59.8% to 81.8%, 98 answers | 69.0%likely range 63.4% to 74.0%, 113 answers |
| Being listened to | 86.1%likely range 75.6% to 92.5%, 103 answers | 87.1%likely range 83.1% to 90.3%, 125 answers |
| Care and concern | 81.3%likely range 70.1% to 88.9%, 104 answers | 84.1%likely range 79.8% to 87.7%, 126 answers |
| Confidence and trust | 93.2%likely range 84.3% to 97.2%, 102 answers | 92.7%likely range 89.4% to 95.1%, 127 answers |
| Involvement in decisions | 92.1%likely range 82.5% to 96.6%, 98 answers | 93.4%likely range 90.1% to 95.7%, 119 answers |
| Needs met | 85.6%likely range 74.8% to 92.2%, 101 answers | 85.7%likely range 81.4% to 89.1%, 122 answers |
| Vaccinations and screening (NHS England QOF, not part of the grade) | ||
| Babies at 8 months | 88.7%likely range 81.2% to 93.4%, 106 patients | 85.7%likely range 72.2% to 93.3%, 42 patients |
| Children at 18 months | 83.6%likely range 73.4% to 90.3%, 73 patients | 85.1%likely range 72.3% to 92.6%, 47 patients |
| Children at 5 years | 82.0%likely range 73.3% to 88.3%, 100 patients | 82.5%likely range 71.4% to 90.0%, 63 patients |
| Women aged 25 to 49 | 45.9%likely range 43.3% to 48.5%, 1,395 patients | 60.3%likely range 56.7% to 63.9%, 701 patients |
| Women aged 50 to 64 | 62.7%likely range 58.7% to 66.5%, 587 patients | 68.9%likely range 64.2% to 73.3%, 396 patients |
| Facts (NHS England, not part of the grade) | ||
| Registered patients | 8,090August 2026 | 4,590August 2026 |
| Primary care network | Dudley and Netherton PCN | Dudley and Netherton PCN |
| Phone | 01384 458229 | 01384 459044 |
| Friends and Family Test (its own feedback) | 90.3% good or very good62 answers, June 2026 | 82.0% good or very good50 answers, June 2026 |
| Appointments (one month) | 5,569 in August 2026Same day 48.1%; face to face 87.1% | 2,402 in August 2026Same day 51.9%; face to face 61.8% |
| Antibiotic items per STAR-PU (one year) | 0.81England 0.74, April 2025 to March 2026 | 0.89England 0.74, April 2025 to March 2026 |
| GPs (full-time equivalent) | 3.5 qualified permanent6.3 including trainees and locums2,281 patients per permanent GP | 2.1 qualified permanent4.0 including trainees and locums2,152 patients per permanent GP |
| CQC rating (a separate source) | Good | Good |
“Clearly higher” appears only when a practice’s likely range lies wholly above every other practice’s here. When the ranges overlap, the survey cannot tell the practices apart and nobody is pointed out. A practice never gets a mark for being lower.
The Practice Grade weighs the survey and access, from NHS appointment and phone data; the other survey questions are from the 2026 GP Patient Survey. The facts are from NHS England, the Care Quality Commission and OHID, are not part of the grade, and are shown as each practice’s own record. NHS England advises against ranking practices on the Friends and Family Test or on appointment figures, and we point nothing out in the facts, vaccination or screening rows.
The full pages
Sources
- 2026 GP Patient Survey: https://www.gp-patient.co.uk/
- Contains information from NHS England, licenced under the current version of the Open Government Licence
- Contains information from the Care Quality Commission, licensed under the Open Government Licence. CQC must be acknowledged as the source of the data; CQC is not responsible for our analysis.
- Contains public sector information licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0. Antibiotic prescribing: UK Health Security Agency and Office for Health Improvement and Disparities (Fingertips), from NHS Business Services Authority prescribing data.