GP Website Audit 2025

Healthwatch North East Lincolnshire undertook a GP website audit using the NHS England GP Website Benchmarking and Improvement Tool. The audit assessed all 19 GP practice websites in North East Lincolnshire against 50 criteria covering key patient priorities and practice priorities, with websites accessed primarily via mobile phones in line with NHS guidance. 

The audit was conducted in response to increasing reliance on online GP services, with 74.4% of respondents to the July 2025 GP Patient Survey reporting use of at least one online GP service in the preceding year. The report highlights that poor website usability can reduce patient confidence in accessing NHS information and services. 

Overall, GP websites in North East Lincolnshire were found to vary widely in usability, accessibility and content quality. Only 7 of the 19 websites clearly linked to all five key patient tasks on their homepage—appointments, prescriptions, fit notes, test results and practice registration—while 8 websites were rated inadequate for this requirement. 

Appointment booking information was inconsistent across sites, with 11 practices displaying appointment pages clearly on the homepage and three practices lacking an appointments page altogether. Ordering repeat prescriptions was identified as a particularly weak area, with only 7 websites achieving a “well” rating for making the prescriptions page easy to find, although content quality within prescription pages was generally stronger.

Information on obtaining sick notes and test results was frequently unclear or incomplete. Only 8 websites provided clear guidance on requesting fit notes, and just one practice explained how patients could receive test results by telephone and text. In contrast, registering with a GP practice performed well overall, with 17 out of 19 practices providing both registration information and an online registration form. 

The strongest performing elements across all websites were basic navigation features, including having the practice name or logo link back to the homepage and avoiding pop-ups or overlays that obstruct access. Most practices also performed well in clearly presenting opening hours using accessible formatting. 

Reading age and accessibility were highlighted as major concerns. Only 5 websites met the recommended reading age of 10–11 years for key pages, while nearly half of the sites scored as inadequate with reading ages of 13 or above. None of the websites used the NHS primary care logo, and only one site provided a detailed staff list including role, gender and qualifications. 

The report also demonstrates the significant impact of website providers and templates. One practice improved dramatically when switching providers, reducing inadequate scores from 25 to 6 and increasing “well” scores to 31. This finding underscores the importance of standardised, well-designed website platforms. 

In conclusion, Healthwatch North East Lincolnshire recommends that all GP practices adopt NHS England’s written content templates for key website pages to improve consistency, accessibility and usability. The report emphasises the need for plain English, clear structure, concise content and patient-centred design to ensure GP websites function effectively as a front door to primary care.