Foundation Doctor's 2023 Guide to Severn

Updated for 2023 Applicants

The Severn Deanery is part of Severn Postgraduate Medical Education, which is also part of Health Education England. It is located in the southwest of England and is home to a number of specialist units. The region’s Major Trauma Centre is North Bristol trust, which also specialises in neurosurgery and stroke, plastics and burns. Specialist services at the Bristol Royal Infirmary include cardiothoracic surgery and bone marrow transplantation. The Bristol Royal Hospital for Children provides specialist care in paediatrics and Cheltenham General Hospital is the centre for specialist Oncology.

With many teaching hospitals, Severn provides ample opportunities to get involved with teaching and research.

Many doctors choose to live in Bristol, as it provides an easy commute to other regions in the Deanery, such as Swindon and Weston. Popular areas to live here include Redland, Ashley Down and Clifton. About half of those based in Cheltenham, Gloucester and Bath will choose to live there, whilst the other half will commute from Bristol. People working in Yeovil and Taunton generally choose to live closer to the hospital as the commute is about 1h30.

Although commuting is mainly done by car, there are good train links and bus routes, and the region is also very bike-friendly.  It is well-connected to surrounding cities, and a train to London can take only an hour and a half.

Bristol is a cultural hub with a multitude of restaurants, bars, sports venues, and music and theatre events (Glastonbury is on your doorstep). For those who love the outdoors, The Mendips, Cotswolds and Quantocks all provide beautiful locations for countryside walks, and the beach isn’t too far away either. Severn may be a competitive deanery, but it’s not without good reason.

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Join The Facebook Group

You can Join the Severn Foundation School page here, plus the group for all UKFP 2023 trainee's here

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Foundation School Statistics

2022 F1 Places: 277
2022 F1 Applicants: 364
2022 Competition Ratio: 1.31

2021 F1 Places: 261
2021 F1 Applicants: 310
2021 Competition Ratio: 1.19

Below is an interactive bar chart displaying the competition ratios, lowest entry scores, and the number of posts over the past 5 years.
Please note that the 2022 data for lowest entry score is not yet available, we will update this graph when it is.

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How Does Severn Compare To Other Foundation Schools?

Check out our article "What are the most competitive foundations schools?" for a full breakdown.

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Hospitals, Rotation Scores, CQC Ratings

In the chart below you'll find a list of hospitals attached to the Severn Foundation School, and an average of their Rotation Scores from Messly’s Training Navigator. Each rotation is given a score out of 100, which is based on a weighted average of ratings given by Foundation Trainees in the 2022 GMC NTS. The national average Rotation Score is 62 for reference.

Colours correspond to the latest CQC rating of that hospital.

Disclaimer: Please note that hospitals are unscored when there are insufficient responses by Foundation Trainees to the GMC’s NTS survey.

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Need Help Ranking Your Foundation Programmes?

Rank your Foundation Programme rotations with confidence with Messly’s Training Navigator. See how rotations are rated by last year’s foundation trainees to make smarter decisions about where you’ll spend your Foundation Training.

You can use it to answer questions like:‍

👉  Which are the best-rated and worst-rated rotations in my Foundation School?
👉  How do the rotations compare for Workload, Learning and Satisfaction?
👉  Which is the best hospital for my favourite specialties?
👉  Within a hospital, which rotations are best-rated?

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A Doctor’s Experience

“For me, the Severn Deanery is an exciting mix of vibrant city life, historic towns and beautiful coast and countryside. We take trips hiking in Wales, surfing in Cornwall, and walking/pubbing in the Cotswolds. On other days, we visit events like the Bath Christmas market, rugby matches in Cardiff and the Cheltenham races.

I’m living in Bristol and currently commuting to Weston General Hospital. Bristol is the perfect sized city to feel at home and still have enough pubs, bars and cafes to try somewhere new each time. The city has distinct regions offering a mixture of culture, sport, music and history. I love it.

Bristol’s hospitals have a great reputation for learning and experience. Every job has been supportive and social. They have strong links to Bristol University and offer good opportunities in education and academia. Severn in general is also great at encouraging taster experiences at work.”

Bethany Brockbank, FY2 at Weston General Hospital in Weston-super-Mare

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