A hospital trust has “bucked a trend” among other providers by maintaining a good overall rating despite pressures, according to its boss.

The Care Quality Commission (CQC) rating came after a routine inspection of University Hospitals Coventry and Warwickshire NHS Trust in September and November 2024.

Prof Andy Hardy, CEO of the trust, which operates two sites, said he was “incredibly proud” of the accomplishment.

In a CQC report published on Friday, some individual aspects of the trust’s provision were also rated as good, while others were downgraded from good to require improvement, with emergency care receiving some criticism.

“This report is against the backdrop of an incredibly pressured NHS and we also know that many CQC reports and ratings recently have seen hospitals actually reducing, given the pressure the NHS is facing, and we’ve bucked that trend and I’m very proud,” said Prof.

Hardy. “We don’t always get [things] right and we look to learn from that and that’s what these reports are good for, they do highlight some things we can get even better.” The CQC used a new system to determine the overall rating, which, while based on a review of leadership and culture in particular, still represents the overarching, formal assessment at the trust level.

However, during the process, specifics were ranked, such as some services and individual hospitals within the trust. The trust oversees two sites:

the 110-bed Hospital of St Cross in Rugby, which does not have an A&E department, and Coventry’s acute University Hospital, which has approximately ten times the number of beds.

Each hospital continues to have a good overall rating. In terms of specific services, a number of options were considered.

Medical care, children and young people, surgery, and urgent and emergency care services were all reviewed at University, with surgery being evaluated at St Cross.

Rugby’s surgery services maintained their high rating, as did Coventry’s medical care and surgery.

However, Coventry’s care for children and young people, as well as urgent and emergency care, has been downgraded from good to requires improvement.

According to the report, demand for the University’s emergency services was “so high” at times that staff were not always able to provide satisfactory care.

Inspectors concluded that patients received “good care” once admitted, but the wait times meant that “outcomes were not always positive.” Prof Hardy stated that he did not believe a second A&E in the region would help relieve the demand.

Earlier this year, Rugby MP Mark Pawsey joined locals in calling for the return of an emergency department to the town hospital.

Prof Hardy stated, “Across the country, and Coventry and Warwickshire are no exception, we are seeing an increase in demand at hospital front doors.”We’re working as a system with our colleagues in primary care, community care ect so people don’t just go to hospital.”

That was identified as something we could do better, and we’re working on it.” Inspectors also found that Coventry’s children and youth services needed to be improved.

According to the report, the service lacked a sufficient number of suitably qualified and experienced nursing staff, and shifts were sometimes run with unsafe staffing levels.

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