Non-NHS Services

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How To Request A Letter

Private letters and reports do not take priority over NHS work.

Requests for letters must be put in writing and you must state clearly:

a) Your full name, date of birth and address.
b) To whom it should be addressed
c) The reason for the letter

You can contact reception and ask for a link to be sent via text message or you can email your request to us via our secure online form

We will endeavour to reply within 72 working hours, with information on the fee and further instructions (if any)

Requesting A Letter From Your GP

We receive letter requests for a number of reasons and our doctors are frequently asked to provide private, a ‘To Whom it May Concern’ letter or reports for third parties. The usual fee for a standard letter is a minimum of £35. Although more complicated letters or reports may attract a higher fee. Please allow up to 42 days for any requests to be fulfilled. If we feel the request will take longer, we will notify you at the payment stage.

Why Is There A Charge?

The cost of these letters and reports are not covered by the NHS. They are completed during the GP’s own time and as such there is a fee payable. All letters require the doctor to take time to review a patient’s medical records to ensure that the information provided is correct, then the doctor has to dictate the letter, and finally the admin team has to prepare it ready for collection.

Timescales

Please allow up to 42 days for any requests to be fulfilled.

Content

We will not accept requests for "the doctor must write these exact words".

The GP will write what they know, (factual information) supported by your medical record. Both the letter and the opinion they produce is final and you cannot request changes to be made. The GP has the right to refuse your request or provide alternative wording if they feel it is necessary.

If you insist on the GP changing your letter to suit what you think it should say, or if you want to dictate the contents, we will withdraw our offer to write the letter. Please remember, the doctor is not obliged to write a letter for you at all, as this is not an NHS requirement.

Appropriate Requests

We will try our best to help you, here are a few examples of suitable and non-suitable requests

Examples of appropriate requests:

• Confirmation of medical conditions and / or medication  
• Letters for mitigating circumstances, school, universities, employers or courts, etc.  
• Letters to the Council/housing requirements  

Examples of inappropriate requests:

• Countersigning passport applications  
• Letters stating something that is not supported by your medical record