SOLENT NHS Trust, which provides community and mental health care services across Hampshire, Southampton and Portsmouth, has been praised for its improvements by inspectors after receiving a rating of ‘good’.

In 2016 the trust was told to do better as part of a report which criticised its safety, effectiveness, and leadership.

Now examiners have given the trust the thumbs up, even noting that the care the organisation provides was deemed to be ‘outstanding’.

This ruling has been welcomed by chiefs at the trust, which runs services at Hythe, Princess Anne, Queen Alexandra , Royal Hampshire County, and Southampton General hospitals.

The report noted that ‘outstanding’ areas included “the vision and purpose” of the organisation as well as the “strong medical leadership” and also “the way in which the trust actively engage in collaborative work with external partners”.

Inspectors also found that the community adults services “planned and provided services in a way that met the needs of local residents” and services were “organised and delivered to take account of and meet the needs of different people”, including those in vulnerable circumstances.

It was also noted that there was “effective cross team working” between staff in different departments as well as organisations outside of the trust. Within the mental health services and throughout the trust as a whole, inspectors found staff were “respectful, compassionate and kind” towards patients.

Inspectors noted that they observed conversations between staff and patients demonstrating highly motivated care provided in a way that promoted patient’s dignity. Inspectors also said that there were rigorous systems in place to keep staff and patients safe, with staff assessing and reviewing patient risk regularly.

Sue Harriman, trust chief executive, said: “The results are a tribute to our teams who consistently give great care, create a great place to work and keep people safe and well at, or close to, home.

“I’m especially proud that the CQC found that we are ‘outstanding’ at providing caring services. Every day I see, and hear, examples of innovative and inspirational patient care, and I know these ratings are well deserved.”

She added: “We pride ourselves on being an organisation with improvement and learning at its core, and this report is a testament to that.”

Dr Nigel Acheson, CQC’s deputy chief inspector of hospitals for the south, added: “I am pleased that the trust has taken to heart the findings from our previous inspection reports and built on them.

“However, there are some areas within the trust that still need work.”