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01  Voice · Regulator · A&E & ambulance response

Chris Storton: no photograph is held, so the Care Quality Commission monogram is shown instead.
Regulator

Chris Storton

Deputy Director of Hospitals (North East), Care Quality Commission

Press coverage by month · bar height shows relative volume
May 2026JuneJulyAugSeptOctNovto date
1

Quoted in the press, across 1 topic since 29 May 2026

02  Quoted on · 1 of 29 topics

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Chris Storton: key facts

Kind of voice
Regulator
Role
Deputy Director of Hospitals (North East)
Organisation
Care Quality Commission
Quoted on
A&E & ambulance response
Press coverage
Quoted in the press
Most recently quoted
6 Sept 2026
First quoted
29 May 2026

03  Profile

Who Chris Storton is

Chris Storton is a Deputy Director of Hospitals in the North East at the Care Quality Commission (CQC), the independent regulator of health and social care in England. In 2026 press releases and coverage he is quoted on inspection findings at NHS trusts in the North East and Yorkshire.

An older CQC inspection report lists him as a team leader and Inspector (Mental Health) on an inspection of community mental health services for older people. In 2026 he said that standards of care at County Durham and Darlington NHS Foundation Trust had deteriorated since the previous inspection. He also said staff there had described a blame culture and some felt discouraged from speaking up.

He has also commented on urgent and emergency care at Doncaster Royal Infirmary, citing long waits and poor oversight.

04  The signal · where Chris Storton sits on a&e & ambulance response

Regularly cited

One of the voices most often quoted in the press on a&e & ambulance response.

Placed by press coverage on this topic only, not across all topics.

  1. Dr Ian Higginson portraitDr Ian HigginsonClinicianPresident, Royal College of Emergency Medicine (RCEM)Leading
  2. Prof Nicola Ranger portraitProf Nicola RangerUnionGeneral Secretary and Chief Executive, Royal College of NursingLeading
  3. Prof Frankie Swords portraitProf Frankie SwordsRegulatorNational Medical Director, NHS England / Department of Health and Social CareLeading
  4. Bill JewsburyClinicianMedical Director, Royal SurreyRegularly cited
  5. Dr Felix LorangAcademicmember of the emergency medicine congress abstract selection committeeRegularly cited
  6. Chris StortonRegulatorDeputy Director of Hospitals (North East), Care Quality CommissionRegularly cited
  7. Dr James GaggAcademicVice president, Royal College of Emergency MedicineRegularly cited
  8. John MartinAcademicChief executive of South Western Ambulance ServiceRegularly cited

Showing the leading voices and those placed around Chris Storton · See every voice on the topic →

05  On the record · press

What Chris Storton has said

By outlet · bar length shows relative volume
  • thetelegraphandargus.co.uk
  • bbc.co.uk

Where Chris Storton has been quoted

  1. Two businessmen design app aimed at reducing A&E lengthy waiting times in Bradfordthetelegraphandargus.co.uk · 6 Sept 2026
  2. Waits of 24 hours at Bradford's A&E highlighted in new report as rating is downgradedthetelegraphandargus.co.uk · 22 Jul 2026
  3. Huddersfield A&E requires improvement says watchdogbbc.co.uk · 29 May 2026
  4. Concerns raised over overcrowding at West Yorkshire A&E departmentthetelegraphandargus.co.uk · 29 May 2026

How we found the articles that name Chris Storton: we searched news for these terms.

  • A&E waiting times
  • A&E department
  • accident and emergency
  • ambulance response times
  • ambulance handover
  • ambulance waiting
  • ambulance service
  • emergency department

Also searched with “A&E waiting times” in each of 8 national papers, and in the Guardian by editor tag, and in trade press by category. Every term for A&E & ambulance response

Verbatim

“People reported concerns over delays and lengthy waits for things such as pain relief or support for personal hygiene needs. Others were waiting in A&E for over 24 hours.”
CQC deputy director of operations in the north-east · A&E & ambulance response · thetelegraphandargus.co.uk · 6 Sept 2026 · Read the article
“When we inspected urgent and emergency care at Bradford Royal Infirmary, we found staff were kind and working hard to meet people's needs under considerable pressure, but leaders needed to mitigate risks to ensure the department ran smoothly even at very busy times.”
CQC deputy director of operations in the north-east · A&E & ambulance response · thetelegraphandargus.co.uk · 22 Jul 2026 · Read the article
“Staff reported periods where the service felt unsafe due to high demand, particularly at night, with paediatrics as a particular concern”
CQC inspector · A&E & ambulance response · bbc.co.uk · 29 May 2026 · Read the article
“We saw corridor care compromising people's safety, privacy, and dignity, with limited staff available to provide safe care.”
CQC deputy director of Hospitals (Secondary and Specialist Care) in the North-East and Yorkshire · A&E & ambulance response · thetelegraphandargus.co.uk · 29 May 2026 · Read the article

Related media coverage

Recent UK press coverage of their topics, not necessarily citing them directly.

06  Sources

References for this biography

  1. Leadership at County Durham and Darlington rated 'inadequate' by CQC (Nursing Times). Identifies him as CQC deputy director of hospitals in the north east. Quotes him on deteriorating standards and a blame culture at County Durham and Darlington NHS Foundation Trust.
  2. CQC Finds Serious Safety Concerns in CDDFT Surgery. Confirms his title as CQC deputy director of hospitals in the North East. Reports his comments on the CDDFT inspection and the leadership team.
  3. CQC finds improvements are needed following inspection of urgent and emergency services at Huddersfield Royal Infirmary (CQC press release). CQC's own press release quotes him as deputy director of Hospitals (Secondary and Specialist Care) in the North-East and Yorkshire. It also describes CQC as the independent regulator of health and social care in England.
  4. Doncaster Royal Infirmary: Hospital trust rapped over urgent and emergency care delays (Yorkshire Post). Quotes him, as CQC deputy director of operations in the north-east, on delays and poor oversight in urgent and emergency care at Doncaster Royal Infirmary.
  5. CQC inspection report: community mental health services for older people. Lists him as team leader and Inspector (Mental Health) on a CQC inspection of community mental health services for older people. The report is undated in the search result.

Named officials of regulators, arms-length bodies and public agencies such as the CQC, NHS England or a local authority association. Citations are counted by an automated scan of UK press coverage and may be incomplete. Roles, biographies and contact details are researched and human-reviewed before they appear here; anything not yet reviewed is simply absent rather than shown unverified. This profile was last updated on 12 Nov 2026. See the methodology for how this page is built, or email contact@bridgeheadcommunications.com to correct anything on it.