Patients have had their say on a GP surgery in Royton after a recent investigation revealed that it breached legal standards.

A recent report by the Care Quality Commission (CQC) has unearthed some serious concerns at Royton Medical Centre on Chapel Street.

Not only has the CQC said the centre 'requires improvement', but the inspectorate even found areas of inadequacy and was concerned for the safety of patients after it found the practice to breach legal requirements on two separate occasions.

Now, patients at the practice have reacted to the news with many saying they were "not surprised" and that the surgery "definitely does require improvement".

The new medical centre has been at the heart of some hefty complaints in recent months, and even fared poorly in NHS England's Patient Survey 2022, for reasons ranging from the inaccessibility of the building itself and the transition to digital technology to the prevailing problem of trying to book an appointment with a GP.

Patients reported that they couldn't get through on the phone and, even when they did, appointments were booked up.

In July this year, a deluge of patients relayed these issues to which Royton Medical Centre said it was working to improve its service based on the feedback and that a new streamlined booking system was coming in October.

READ MORE: ‘You hope you don’t get sick’: Royton residents blast battle for GP appointment

However, the CQC report reveals patient feedback was not taken on board and fresh criticism suggests the new booking system hasn't helped.

Susan Stuttard said: "The new booking system is a nightmare.

"You can't phone the practice to make an appointment - you have to fill in a very repetitive form which takes 10-15 minutes.

"The practice was so good when we joined many moons ago", she added.

Throughout summer and September, Oldham Council and the Greater Manchester Integrated Care Partnership said they would look into the practice to try to address the issues.

Amanda Chadderton, leader of Oldham Council, said she would write to the surgery in July to "try and work through the problems" raised.

READ MORE: Royton residents struggling to see a GP months despite Oldham Council probe

The councillor confirmed in September that conversations were "ongoing" and that some changes had already been made with the surgery using the comments to improve its service.

However, the latest CQC report and criticism by patients suggest little has changed.

Tim Glennon said both he and his wife are patients at Royton Medical Centre and that he has just "one defence" of the practice in that it has "one of the best GPs I've ever seen".

Mr Glennon said Dr Stewart goes "above and beyond" to help but pointed out the entrance is "awkward" for wheelchairs and mobility scooters while "trying to book an appointment is a nightmare".

A spokesperson for Royton Medical Centre said practitioners welcomed the CQC report as "constructive criticism" to build on.

They also suggested the surgery was just one piece of the national picture of GP surgeries that are struggling post-pandemic with scarce resources.

Oldham Council declined to comment on the CQC report.