NHS patients in Warrington are reaping the rewards of the Government's GP incentive scheme.

Since it was set up in autumn last year, all GP practices in the town have demonstrated improved services to patients.

Under the system, known as the Quality and Outcomes Framework (QOF), GP practices score points for achievement against a range of indicators, such as the number of patients with heart disease who receive a flu jab.

The more points the practice achieves and the more services it provides, the more money it earns - although the final sum paid to practices is also adjusted to take account of their workload and the relative health of patients in their area.

GP practices also systematically record patient information, which means that patients with chronic conditions like diabetes and heart disease benefit from good quality, consistent care because the system makes it easy for GPs to recall patients for follow up appointments and to know when checks are due.

Warrington's 28 NHS GP practices have scored highly against a range of checks covering all aspects of care from diagnosis and ongoing management of conditions to record keeping, communication and the overall experience of patients.

On average, each practice achieved 91.35 per cent of the points available - or 959.14 out of a possible 1,050 points.

Helen Speed, Warrington Primary Care Trust's director of health standards, said: "These excellent results show that the new system is giving GPs a real incentive to improve the quality of care they offer to patients and to manage chronic conditions effectively.

"For the first time, GP practices are rewarded for the outcomes they achieve with patients and not just the volume of work that they do."

Dr Mike Dennis, a GP at Folly Lane Medical centre and chair of the PCT's Professional Executive Committee, said: "Increased investment in local health and care services should be good news for patients, who should benefit from better care and provides a basis for even greater improvements."