Blog & Articles

BMA: New GP reimbursement scheme could be formalised in May

2026-04-08 1 min read

The Government is expected to formalise a new GP practice reimbursement scheme in May, allowing practices to claim funding backdated for the full financial year. The £292m scheme, moved from PCN Capacity and Access Payments, is intended to help practices recruit more GPs or increase GP sessions, but PCN leaders have warned it could force cuts to network services and create uncertainty for staff and patient care

GMS SFE 2026/27: The Key Funding, QOF and Contract Changes Every Practice Needs to Know

2026-04-01 1 min read

The 2026/27 GMS Statement of Financial Entitlements brings a meaningful reset for general practice, with a higher Global Sum, an expanded and restructured QOF, new obesity and cardiovascular disease indicators, changes to vaccination provisions including MenB, and updated dispensing feescales. For practices, the real story is not just the uplift in funding, but the operational work needed to update searches, templates, recalls, coding and financial models so the new contract rules translate into

Compliance

PCN DES and QOF Changes for 2026/27

2026-03-26 1 min read

The 2026/27 updates to the Network Contract Directed Enhanced Service and the Quality and Outcomes Framework are not minor housekeeping edits. Between them, they change how practices can deploy GP capacity, how PCNs are expected to evidence continuity and screening delivery, and how QOF points are earned across a number of high-value indicators.

CQC

CQC to revisit older Good and Outstanding GP ratings under new focused assessment programme

2026-03-25 1 min read

From March 2026, lower-risk NHS GP practices with historic Good and Outstanding ratings will begin to face focused reassessment under CQC’s new Returning to Good and Outstanding programme, with inspections centred on 10 non-clinical quality statements rather than a full clinically led review.

Capacity and Access Payment 2026/27: what practices need to do now

2026-03-24 1 min read

The new practice-level GP reimbursement scheme is more than a funding change. This guide explains what is confirmed, what is still unclear, and what practices should tighten now around urgent access, reporting and GP capacity.

A checklist for preparing your practice for neighbourhood working

2026-03-18 1 min read

Neighbourhood working is moving from policy language into operating reality. For practices, partners and PCN leaders, the question is no longer whether it is coming, but how prepared your organisation is when local structures start to harden.

Neighbourhood Health Framework: what GP practice managers need to know

2026-03-17 1 min read

For GP practices, this is not just another policy paper. It sets out new neighbourhood-based structures, clear operational expectations, and a delivery timetable running from April 2026 to March 2029. For practice managers, that means changes to partnership working, data sharing, governance, access standards, and day-to-day operations.

DCB0160 for GP Practices: What It Means and What You Need to Do

2026-03-12 1 min read

DCB0160 is the NHS clinical safety standard for how GP practices deploy and use digital systems. It is not about whether a supplier’s product is safe in general, but whether it is safe in your practice, with your workflows, configuration, staff training, and local processes. Here’s what practices need to know, what is usually in scope, and the practical steps to get compliant.

Preparing Your GP Practice for Same-Day Urgent Access

2026-03-10 1 min read

The April 2026 contract change is close. For most practices, the challenge is not building a brand-new access model from scratch. It is tightening triage, recording urgency properly, stopping weak front-door habits, and putting enough cover in place to go live safely.