Chief executive Karen Howell said the services had been independently scrutinised by NHS England, Greater Manchester Integrated Care Partnership and Professor Oliver Shanley and believed the quality of service provided can be evidenced as good.

Howell added: ‘Nevertheless, this should not take away from the improved rating, including good for three important domains, which is a real recognition of the hard work and dedication of our people and teams to drive improvements, in close collaboration with service users, carers and partners. Particular areas of improvement noted in the report include service user and carer engagement, patient flow and patient safety, three vital elements in best practice care and treatment.  

‘This demonstrates the real progress that has been made and signifies one more tangible step forward in our improvement journey, following on from NHS England's decision to approve the trust's exit from the Recovery Support Programme in November 2025. Of course we know that there is more work to be done, and, together, will continue to build upon and sustain improvements made to deliver care that truly makes a difference.'

While noting improvements at the trust, the CQC said registered mental health nurses staffing shortages were negatively impacting on people's care.

The CQC also rated the trust's perinatal services as good, noting staff treated people with kindness and compassion and were responsive to their needs, with leaders skilled and knowledgeable about the service and approachable to staff and people.