Dear Patient,
From 1 April 2026, all GP practices in England are required to follow new NHS rules on how appointments are managed. These changes apply to every practice nationally and are designed to ensure that all requests for medical help are assessed fairly and safely.
How the new system works
Under the new NHS contract, every request for a GP appointment must be assessed before an appointment can be offered. At The Dunstan Partnership, this will be carried out by a senior GP. This means that when you contact the practice, either via our online consultation request form, by telephone or in person, your request will be reviewed by a senior GP who will decide the most appropriate next step.
How to make a GP appointment (from 1 April 2026)
Medically urgent and routine requests can be submitted through our online consultation system from 7.30am each working day.
- When we reach safe capacity for urgent same‑day appointments, urgent requests can no longer be submitted online. A notice will appear on the system when this happens, and this may occur at different times each day. If you see this message and believe your problem is urgent and needs same‑day care, please telephone the surgery for assessment.
- Please be aware that, due to safe working limits, you may be directed to another provider such as Out‑of‑Hours services or A+E, if the senior GP reviewing your request agrees that you need urgent attention.
- Routine requests can continue to be submitted online until 6.30pm.
Submitting your online form as early as possible (especially if you feel it needs an urgent same-day appointment) increases the likelihood of us being able to offer you an appointment. Please include as much detail as you can, as this helps the GP assess your symptoms accurately.
If you are vulnerable or genuinely unable to access the online forms, our admin team can complete a request with you. This takes longer than completing it yourself, as they will need to ask multiple questions to ensure the GP has the right information.
Please give clear details about your symptoms — one‑line or very brief answers often don’t give the GP enough information to understand what you’re experiencing, and we want to make sure you receive the appropriate care.
We would appreciate all patients who can access the online forms doing so, as during busy periods the telephone queue is likely to be longer
What happens after your appointment request has been assessed
There are two possible outcomes:
- Medically Urgent (Same Day Need) – if the GP assesses that your symptoms require attention the same day, you will be offered an appointment with the most appropriate clinician. This may be a GP, Advanced Nurse Practitioner, First Contact Physiotherapist, Mental Health Practitioner, Paramedic, Pharmacist or another appropriate healthcare provider, for example, NHS 111, Pharmacy First, our Out of Hours service provider (after 6.30 PM), or A&E for life-threatening conditions.
- Routine (Everything else) – All other requests will be classed as routine. To make the system safer and fairer, we use three routine categories:
- Routine – Priority Group: You will be contacted within 72 hours (often sooner) with an appointment.
- Routine – Soon: You will be contacted in approximately 2 weeks with an appointment time.
- Routine – Standard: You will be contacted in approximately 4 weeks with an appointment time.
Your GP will decide which category your request falls into, based on your symptoms and your clinical history.
How you will be contacted
We will contact you by telephone or text before the end of the next working day. You will either be offered an appropriate appointment or informed of your priority group, the next steps, and when you can expect further contact.
It is essential that we have your correct telephone number. If your number changes, please let us know immediately. If we are unable to reach you after reasonable attempts, your appointment offer may be delayed.
Appointment Availability
We regret that we will not always be able to offer appointment times outside school or working hours. Appointment availability is determined by clinical urgency and the capacity of our team. We will ask all patients to make reasonable efforts to attend appointments offered. It is important that you state your availability when requesting your appointment.
Please do not contact us to chase your place in the queue
Once your request has been assessed, you don’t need to contact us again unless your symptoms change or worsen. Your place in the queue is secure, and checking in will not speed up the process. Extra calls increase pressure on the system and can delay us contacting patients when appointments become available. We’ll be in touch as soon as your appointment is ready to book.
The only time you need to contact the surgery is if you have not heard from us by the time stated in your text message or if your symptoms worsen. It is important that you do contact us at this point.
If your symptoms change – when we are open (08.00 – 18.30 Monday – Friday)
If your condition worsens and you need urgent same day help while awaiting a routine appointment you can:
- Contact NHS 111 or
- Or contact the practice for re-assessment
Your request will be re-assessed by the GP and your category may change, if clinically appropriate.
If your symptoms change- when we are closed (18.30 – 08.00 Monday to Friday, or at the weekend)
If your condition worsens and you need urgent same day help while awaiting a routine appointment and the practice is closed, please contact:
- NHS 111
- Out of Hours service (after 6.30 PM and before 8 AM any weekday, or at anytime during the weekend): 0161 763 8940
Why these changes may feel different
We understand that this system may feel different from what you may be used to. We are, however, committed to providing safe, timely care and will continue to do our best within the national framework that we are required to follow.
Thank you for your patience and co-operation as we implement these NHS wide changes.
Key points to remember
- From 1 April 2026, all appointment requests must be clinically assessed first, in line with national NHS rules.
- All requests are reviewed by a senior GP, who decides the most appropriate next step based on your symptoms and medical history.
- Urgent and routine requests can be submitted online from 7.30am each working day.
- Once safe capacity for urgent same‑day appointments has been reached, urgent requests can no longer be submitted via the online consultation system. A notice will be displayed on the online consultation platform when this happens, as capacity may be reached at different times during the day. If you see this message, and you believe your medical problem is urgent and needs same-day care, you must telephone the surgery for assessment.
- Routine requests are prioritised into Priority (within 72 hours), Soon (around 2 weeks) or Standard (around 4 weeks).
- Please give clear, detailed information when submitting a request to help us assess you safely and accurately.
- We will contact you by text or phone when your request has been assessed and when you appointment is ready to be booked – please ensure your contact details are up to date.
- Once your request has been assessed, please do not contact the surgery to chase, unless your symptoms change or you have not heard from us by the stated time.
- If your symptoms worsen significantly while waiting and the practice is shut, please contact NHS 111, or the Out of Hours service for reassessment.
