The Cumbria, Northumberland, Tyne and Wear Trust provides above average non-clinical support to disabled patients, new figures show.

Disability Rights UK said while the national picture was generally positive, true experiences of disabled patients may differ due to high staff vacancies and lower expectations.

The patient-led assessment of the care environment is an annual survey of NHS patients, who review the care they received across a variety of topics, including privacy, food, and cleanliness.

It shows Cumbria, Northumberland, Tyne and Wear NHS Foundation Trust scored 90 per cent for the non-clinical support it provided to disabled patients in 2022-23.

This was up slightly from the year before, when disability services were rated at 88 per cent.

Across England, 84 per cent of patients with a disability were satisfied with the level of non-clinical care they received last year – a slight increase on 83 per cent in 2022.

Non-clinical support includes accessibility, clear signage, and other measures to support the needs of a disabled patient.

Fazilet Hadi, head of policy at Disability Rights UK said the figures are "positive" but should be treated with caution.

James Duncan, Chief Executive at Cumbria, Northumberland, Tyne and Wear NHS Foundation Trust, said: “Feedback is extremely important to us and it is vital that we hear from people using our services so that we can identify what is working well and where there is room for improvement.

“We’re delighted to see that we have scored higher in our non-clinical support for disabled patients since last year and that we are above the national average.

“The care of our service users remains our organisation’s top priority and I would like to thank our staff for their hard work and dedication for making this possible. Having said that, we are not complacent and will continue to work toward improving this even further.”

NCIC scored 81 per cent for the non-clinical support it provided to disabled patients in 2022-23.