Six weeks on from the implementation of the new GP contract, Operose Health has successfully introduced routine digital access during core hours across all 56 of our GP practices, supporting 1,800 primary care colleagues and serving over 700,000 patients.
With many practices, PCNs and ICBs seeking safe and sustainable ways to meet the new contract requirements, we are sharing our early experience, outcomes and learning.
How Operose Health implemented the new GP contract
To align with NHS England’s expectations and deliver on the aims of the NHS Long Term Plan, we focused on equity, safety and operational consistency.
Key elements of our model
- Equitable patient access: all patients, accessing care online, by phone or walk-in, follow the same routine pathway.
- Unrestricted routine requests: patients can submit any clinical concern as routine, supported by robust red-flag guidance.
- Patient-confirmed safety: patients confirm their issue can safely wait up to five days and receive safety-netting advice.
- Urgent care pathways protected: urgent needs continue through existing rapid-access routes.
- Leadership-led, colleague-driven rollout: pathway design was co-developed with teams nationwide, with regular feedback and clear communication.
- Early preparation ahead of 1 October: 20 pilot practices from urban, rural and demographically diverse, tested the approach in September 2025.
- Daily safety monitoring: rapid escalation processes were in place to senior clinicians and operational leaders during the pilot.
- At-scale support: national clinical, digital and operational teams provided consistency and relieved pressure on practices during transition.
Early outcomes: safety, capacity and patient experience
The first month of operation demonstrates that the new GP contract can be delivered safely and effectively at scale.
Impact so far
- Routine access available throughout core hours, with no patient caps.
- All routine requests placed on triage lists within 24 to 36 hours.
- No safety concerns reported; no practices exceeded their capacity.
- 75% of practice leads have report reduced team pressure and fewer challenging conversations about access.
- 85% had a positive experience implementing the contract; 96% felt supported.
- Clinicians report clearer expectations and manageable workloads.
- Friends and Family Test (FFT) satisfaction rose to 86%, a 2% improvement since contract launch.
- More than 34,000 routine requests were safely managed in October 2025.
These findings demonstrate that the model not only protects patient safety but also improves colleagues experience - a core priority for resilience in primary care.
Why we’re sharing this learning
Across the NHS, colleagues have expressed concerns about digital demand, triage safety and capacity under the new GP contract.
Our early experience shows that a consistent, well-supported access model can meet contract requirements, deliver safe care and ease pressure on practice teams.
Operose Health will continue to monitor outcomes and refine the model, but the initial results reinforce that the contract’s ambitions are achievable.
Supporting the wider system
As the largest primary care provider in England, Operose Health recognises our responsibility to support the wider NHS as primary care evolves.
Our Chief Medical Officer, Professor Nick Harding OBE, and our operational teams are happy to host visits for ICBs, PCNs, GP practices and commissioners wanting to see the access model in action.
Colleagues can meet clinical teams, view live workflows and discuss digital access, triage processes, workforce optimisation and operational resilience.
Our model continues to deliver measurable improvements, including:
- 55.4% same-day access, significantly above the national average of 44%
- Higher colleague retention rates
- Lower reliance on agency and locum staff
We are committed to helping primary care organisations build safe, sustainable and future-ready access models aligned with NHS England’s long-term goals.
