DUNSTER Surgery has been named the Somerset GP Practice of the Year by the Somerset Clinical Commissioning Group.

The surgery’s two doctors, Dr David Davies and Dr Ian Kelham, together with dispensary manager Lorne Marshall and practice manager Georgina Langley, collected the accolade at the commissioning group’s annual general meeting.

As reported in the Free Press, the surgery was recently graded as ‘outstanding’ by the Care Quality Commission, and Dr Davies said this week he was delighted with the latest accolade from the CCG, the organisation responsible for commissioning healthcare services in the county.

“We’re very lucky in Somerset to have many fantastic GP surgeries working at the very highest levels and to be awarded the best one of the lot this year is amazing,” he said.

“It says a lot about the hard work – under pretty stressful conditions – and good spirit of everyone who works at Dunster Surgery.

“It’s been quite a year, what with the road closure for three months in Dunster, the building of the new surgery which has been fully six years in the planning, and now the closure of our neighbouring practice, the Brendon Hills Surgery, which has meant a lot of new and very welcome patients coming over.”

In addition, the Friends of Dunster Surgery, a group of patients who come together to inform the practice of patient and community ideas and concerns, were named as runners-up in the best patient participation group in Somerset at the same awards ceremony.