Electric vehicle (EV) charge point operator (CPO) Believ has won the EV Debt Deal of the Year at the 2025 EVIE awards, recognising its role in helping to accelerate the rollout of public EV charging infrastructure across the UK.
Believ was nominated for its closing of £300 million of investment in June 2025, a landmark deal that will fund at least 30,000 charge points and positions Believ as one of the UK’s best-capitalised CPOs.The funding was led by Believ’s joint owners Liberty Global and Zouk Capital, Europe’s leading private equity investor in EV charging, alongside four retail and infrastructure financing banks – Santander, ABN Amro, NatWest and MUFG.
With this funding, Believ is able to deliver reliable, accessible, and scalable public charging infrastructure that will play a crucial role in supporting the UK to meet the government’s ambition to install 300,000 public charge points needed by 2030. The deal combines long-term financial security with flexible deployment capability and highlights the essential role of private capital in advancing the UK’s transition to net zero.
Believ’s expansion strategy focuses on both underserved urban areas where off-street parking is limited, and key transit corridors, ensuring equitable access to charging across the nation, and working towards Believ’s goal of cleaner air for all.
Guy Bartlett, Believ CEO, said: “We are delighted to have been awarded the EV Debt Deal of the Year Award, which recognises our efforts to ensure the investment in reliable and scalable charging infrastructure in the UK, and the urgency of the need.
“EV uptake will continue to grow as drivers see more infrastructure going into the ground and are given the confidence to make the switch to electric. At Believ, we are very proud to be at the heart of this journey.”
Health tech growth partner Highland has today revealed its new identity – reflecting a sharper focus as it helps health tech companies to find market opportunities, convince target audiences, and drive growth.
Known for nearly a quarter of a century as Highland Marketing, the company has built a strong reputation for launching and championing many successful health tech brands.
Setting a trend in the early 2000s, the company became one of the first integrated marketing and communications agencies to focus solely on health tech. Since then, it has helped a wide range of technology companies as they have hit headlines, won major contracts, influenced policy, and become market leaders.
Now formally known as Highland, the company’s updated identity reflects innovation in service provision that goes beyond traditional marketing. Health tech companies have engaged Highland to understand their viable market, to engage and convince health and care audiences, and to grow their business through a range of strategies to get directly in front of decision makers.
Mark Venables, CEO of Highland, said: “Health tech companies need more than just traditional marketing to succeed and grow. The ability to project our customers’ messages into the market remains important. But we have listened carefully to health tech companies as requirements have evolved, innovating in response. Resulting impact and the ability to respond to business objectives has led to us becoming a growth partner in health tech. Our updated identity reflects more than a brand refresh – but another leap forward to help drive health tech adoption, and take-up of technology that can make a meaningful difference to people’s lives.”
Highland’s message comes at a time of significant national focus on technology adoption in health and care. During 2025 alone the NHS 10-year health plan placed significant emphasis on moving from analogue to digital, and a separate Life Sciences Sector Plan has spelled out the importance of health tech for both health resilience and the UK economy. An urgency to scale innovation was also described in Lord Darzi’s 2024 independent review of the NHS, and in a November report on the NHS Innovation Ecosystem.
Susan Venables, founder and client services director of Highland, said: “There was an unprecedented opportunity for technology in healthcare when Highland Marketing was launched in the early 2000s. National policy is again focussed heavily on technology adoption. The emergence of innovation, including AI, is rapidly developing. And a rich UK health tech sector with thousands of companies means there is an especially strong opportunity to advance health and wealth.
“Delivering on that requires a new approach in 2025, so that innovative companies can respond to a new era in health tech – that’s why Highland has become a growth partner for our clients. I am immensely proud of the trust and confidence our team has earned in the sector, something we never take for granted. It means we have the connections, the expertise, and the services to be a driving force for health tech. As we help companies navigate the complexities of a changing sector, we are committed to helping them to find, convince, and grow their market.”
Full details of how Highland can support growth in the health tech sector can be found at highland.health.
Royal Navy sailors and marines interdict vessels carrying £35 million worth of illegal drugs in the Gulf of Oman
HMS Lancaster used crewed and uncrewed air assets to detect, monitor and intercept several high-speed drugs boats
Vital work disrupts flow of illegal drugs around the world, helping to keep narcotics off UK streets as part of the Plan for Change
Royal Marine snipers disabled a drugs boat speeding across the Gulf of Oman as frigate HMS Lancaster dealt a £35m blow to the illegal narcotics trade.
Commando snipers brought the ‘skiff ‘– zipping over the waves at speeds in excess of 40 knots while its crew tried to ditch their illegal cargo – to an immediate halt with a bullseye shot to knock out the boat’s engine.
The snipers took aim from a Wildcat helicopter launched from the warship to intercept three suspect craft in one of the most dramatic counter-drugs intercepts the Royal Navy has been involved with in the Middle East.
Pictured: HMS Lancaster’s wildcat helicopter and Royal Marines Boarding Team prepare to conduct a drugs seizure in the Gulf of Aden as part of operations in the Middle East in support of Combined Maritime Forces Task Force 150, and UK Maritime Component Command as part of Operation KIPION
More than 1½ tonnes of drugs were recovered in all – heroin, crystal methamphetamine and hashish with an estimated UK street value in excess of £35M.
Keeping the country safe is the Government’s first priority, and an integral part of its Plan for Change. The work of the Royal Navy at home and abroad is critical to the security and stability of the UK and directly contributes to the government’s Safer Streets Mission.
The UK remains steadfast in its commitment to our armed forces and has pledged to raise defence spending to 2.6% of GDP from 2027, with the aspiration to further increase it to 3% during the next parliament.
Minister for the Armed Forces, Al Carns, said:
“Outstanding work by the crew of the HMS Lancaster who stopped and seized £35M worth of dangerous and illicit drugs at sea. Moreover, a well-planned operation culminating in a surgical shot by a Royal Marines sniper disabling the engine of a vessel traveling at 40 knots. That’s excellence at work.
“Not only have our Royal Navy and Royal Marines disrupted a major criminal enterprise and kept drugs off our streets and away from our kids, but have once again demonstrated effectiveness, decisive action and the exceptionally high standard of our Royal Navy and Marines.
“I salute our Royal Navy and Royal Marines for their indefatigable work keeping us safe at home and strong abroad.”
This is the first time snipers have been called upon to use non-lethal force to disable a suspicious boat in the Gulf region – where typically slow-moving dhows are used to hide the illicit cargoes – unlike the Caribbean, where the tactic has proved effective on several occasions.
The operation began when HMS Lancaster launched her Wildcat from 815 Naval Air Squadron on a dawn patrol over the Gulf of Oman.
Her crew soon picked up three suspicious skiffs travelling at speed – and secretly shadowed them while relaying critical information back to the warship.
That allowed Lancaster to launch her Peregrine mini-helicopter drone to continue monitoring the skiffs – again undetected – providing a live video feed to the ship’s operations room.
Meanwhile, the Wildcat returned to refuel and embark a Maritime Sniper Team from 42 Commando – the Royal Marines’ specialists in boarding operations – to close in for the interception.
Pictured: HMS Lancaster’s ships Helicopter (Wildcat HMA Mk2) aircraft surveillance imagery of skiffs transiting through the Gulf of Aden, during HMS Lancaster narcotics seizure as part of operations in the Middle East in support of Combined Maritime Forces Task Force 150, and UK Maritime Component Command as part of Operation KIPION
When the helicopter appeared over the skiffs, their crews immediately increased speed to more than 40 knots and began hurling their cargo into the water to reduce weight.
Ultimately, it led to two of the skiffs being abandoned – but not the third which persisted in trying to get away.
At this point, the marines targeted the outboard engine, neutralising it with a single round, while crew of the warship’s sea boat recovered the discarded packages and located a partially-submerged abandoned skiff.
The operation highlights HMS Lancaster’s capability to deter illicit activities and disrupt the narcotics trade.
Commander Sam Stephens, Commanding Officer of HMS Lancaster said:
“I’m hugely proud of the team’s professionalism, patience, and skill throughout what was a protracted chase,”
“This operation saw Lancaster’s crewed and uncrewed aircraft working hand-in-glove under the direction of the ship’s operations room. The outcome was a highly-successful bust, removing large quantities of narcotics from the streets and preventing their profits from fuelling extremism.”
Wildcat pilot Lieutenant Guy Warry added:
“Non-lethal disabling fire has not been seen in the region and was essential in preventing the drug runners from moving their product.
“Being the Wildcat pilot carrying out a live weapons firing on drug-running skiffs whilst flying backwards to provide a stable platform for the snipers was definitely a career highlight.
“This interdiction is a true testament to the high levels of training that both the flight, MST and ship have achieved prior to the bust.”
HMS Lancaster is a Type 23 frigate deployed to the Middle East region on a long-term mission as part of wider efforts by the UK to provide regional maritime security and stability.
It’s the first bust Lancaster has scored since she intercepted a £30m shipment of illegal narcotics in late May.
Foreign Commonwealth and Development Office (FCDO) sought to optimize its system of suppliers’ code compliance and create total visibility across its commercial department via a single, unified platform. By leveraging JAGGAER’s Supplier Management, Sourcing, and Contracts solutions, the FCDO’s Supply Chain Risk: Ethics team has reduced supplier complaints, streamlined compliance and procurement processes and improved record keeping and collaboration.
What is FCDO?
The Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office (FCDO) was established in 2020 following the merger of the Foreign and Commonwealth Office (FCO) with the Department for International Development (DFID). It leads the UK’s diplomatic, development and consular work around the world. Its staff operate a global network of 281 offices worldwide. The FCDO’s work in international development and aid is building a safer, healthier, more prosperous world.
The Challenge
The FCDO procures a wide range of goods, services, and contracts work, from embassy construction to technical assistance. To foster best practice and ensure effective use of UK taxpayers’ funds, suppliers must adhere to the FCDO’s values on ethics, sustainability, and responsible business, as outlined in its Supplier Code of Conduct (the Code). Historically, the FCDO’s Supply Chain Risk: Ethics team used a manual process, collecting supplier information through WeTransfer, Excel and PowerPoint, an approach that quickly became unmanageable. As a result, the team pivoted to a system originally designed for Supply Relationship Management (SRM) colleagues, inputting questions for suppliers to demonstrate compliance with the FCDO’s Code by submitting documents for evaluation. However, this system did not meet the team’s needs; it lacked scoring functionality, requiring a workaround using Excel spreadsheets to score responses and provide feedback. It was also unstable; recurring issues were seldom resolved promptly, and explanations for them rarely forthcoming. In all, the situation added growing ‘non-value’ time by having to explain issues to suppliers and eroded confidence in the platform within the team. The introduction of a new interface to the SRM system proved a tipping point for the FCDO to make a change. “We didn’t like it, we didn’t have the bandwidth to train our suppliers to use it, and it only presented the same information in a new format—we gained nothing,” says the FCDO Supply Chain Ethics Risk Manager. The team realized they needed a more reliable and stable solution, with integrated review, scoring, workflow, and reporting features.
The Solution
JAGGAER was selected as the Procurement platform for the newly created FCDO organization in 2020. This required substantial change within the commercial department, as the Supply Chain Risk: Ethics team, historically based in the Department For International Development (DFID), had not previously used JAGGAER, having relied instead on a supplier information management system. With limited time until their previous supplier’s contract expired, and subject to the same budgetary constraints as all other government departments, it was apt for the team to investigate the functionality for managing compliance inherent within the platform. “Plus, it tied in with the wider strategy of ‘one commercial’—that we would all work on one tool, with data available across different teams for different uses, but in a single location,” says FCDO Supply Chain Risk: Supplier & Financial Team Lead. When coupled with the opportunity to deliver cost savings and work across the FCDO’s entire commercial department from a “single system”, the platform’s potential presented a vast opportunity and an easy decision for leadership to support. Indeed, integrating compliance processes with the procurement process within a single system has created potential for greater collaboration within that wider commercial department. “That’s why we first and foremost investigated JAGGAER—it met those needs. And it didn’t need complex procurement after that because it had the functionality we were already paying for within our contract,” they continue.
With the system already in place at the FCO as a source-to-pay procurement platform, the newly merged FCDO added Supplier Management, Sourcing, and Contracts solutions. Information was transitioned from the legacy SIMS system to the new platform. The Supply Chain Risk: Ethics team supported suppliers with onboarding through the creation of training videos and user manuals with the Supply Chain Ethics Risk Manager and colleagues acting as ad hoc consultants to address any outstanding issues or queries—mostly around log-ins. “I’m still in the process of an initial deployment, as we have certain points in our cycle where we’re doing things for the first time in the live environment,” says the FCDO Supply Chain Ethics Risk Manager. While around 450 people are currently using JAGGAER across the commercial department—with a total of 500 licenses— that figure is around five for compliance, predicted to grow to 100, including suppliers.
When the platform was implemented as a compliance tool, it dramatically improved the supplier experience. After launching JAGGAER it for supplier collaboration, supplier complaints dropped significantly freeing up FCDO resources from circular investigations. “We had very positive feedback from suppliers,” reports the FCDO Supply Chain Ethics Risk Manager. “They like the way JAGGAER looks, the way it works, and the fact that it’s stable and reliable.” Where scoring was previously stand-alone via Excel spreadsheets—now, question sets, responses and scoring are all contained within the system. This enables better record keeping and makes it easier to access records and transfer responsibility for suppliers between team members in the event of absence or role change. Staff within the wider procurement team have visibility into whether a supplier is Code compliant or not, and integrating compliance processes with the procurement process within a single system has enabled greater visibility of supplier code compliance status within the wider commercial department.
With JAGGAER, The FCDO can now align the supplier’s Code compliance record with the Standard Selection Questionnaire (SQ) process—the first step in proving a supplier is qualified to submit a tender which involves them providing a considerable amount of basic information. Previously, suppliers had to provide this twice—once when preparing the tender and again as part of the compliance process. “Because we’re now on the same system, we’ve aligned the questions we’re asking for process documents in SQ to the questions we ask under the compliance process,” says the FCDO Supply Chain Ethics Risk Manager. “We’re comparing apples with apples—so if suppliers can show they’re Code compliant, they’re spared the time and effort of having to do it again.” The Supply Chain Risk: Ethics team successfully delivered the transfer of supplier information from its legacy compliance system to the new platform within a tight timescale. In doing so it is supporting an essential process of government with compliance now integrated into the full procurement lifecycle.
By Erica Hodgson, Change Management Practice Director at Differentis
The NHS isn’t broken because of who’s been in charge.
It’s broken because of how it works and how change has been managed in the past.
Earlier this year, the Government announced one of the biggest shake-ups in decades: abolishing NHS England and bringing the service back under the Department of Health and Social Care. Alongside this, a £3.25 billion Transformation Fund and a 10-Year Health Plan promise leaner operations, digital-first care, and more joined-up services.
On paper, it sounds ambitious. In reality, we’ve seen this before.
If you’ve worked anywhere near the frontline, you’ll know the issue isn’t structure. It’s the experience of trying to deliver care through broken systems, outdated processes, and exhausting workarounds. That’s where transformation fails: not in vision, but in execution.
As someone who helps NHS Trusts deliver change that sticks, I can say with certainty: transformation doesn’t fail because of policy. It fails when it isn’t built around people, process, and behaviour.
We don’t need another top-down restructure. We need a ground-up redesign that tackles what really stops progress: poorly managed change, disjointed processes, and systems that make care harder, not easier.
The Government’s reform and the real problems
To make this transformation meaningful, we need to be honest about what’s holding the NHS back. Without tackling deep-rooted inefficiencies and outdated infrastructure, this reform risks becoming another reorganisation without reform.
As Bev Wright, Head of UKI Public Sector at Adobe, says: “The Transformation Fund is a welcome signal of intent to unlock productivity and capability benefits of AI, but without organising data and replacing legacy systems first, it risks not moving us forward.”
The ambition vs reality:
What the Government says reform will achieve:
Reduce bureaucracy
Centralise decision-making
Streamline operations and funding
What the Transformation Fund aims to deliver:
Reduce inefficiencies
Drive transformation and reform
Support a leaner, more cost-effective public sector
But the reality remains complex. At an operational level, the NHS still faces:
Siloed data and fragmented digital systems
Poor process design and lack of interoperability
A culture that prioritises KPIs over patient experience
The State of Digital Government Report found that over half (50.4%) of public sector organisations spend more than 40% of their time and budget maintaining legacy systems — rising to 63% among arm’s-length bodies. In the NHS, 42% of processes are still paper-based. These legacy systems don’t just slow progress — they block it.
The other risk? Running before walking.
AI has been positioned as a key pillar of the Transformation Fund, but without solid foundations, it could add burden rather than value. NHS Digital leaders remain cautious, and rightly so. Without strong governance, robust data infrastructure, and clear standards, AI could become another compliance headache rather than a catalyst for change.
And while the 10-Year Health Plan promises neighbourhood health centres and digital-by-default pathways, these ambitions will fail without the right operational groundwork.
The risk of another ‘reorganisation without reform’
Previous NHS reorganisations, however well-intentioned, have often increased complexity instead of reducing it. Layering new governance over broken systems simply shifts the problem, rather than solving it.
Meanwhile, financial pressures are tightening. Trusts are expected to deliver 4% efficiency savings in 2025/26 — almost double last year’s target, and four times the NHS’s historical productivity growth rate. This comes as real-terms funding growth sits closer to 2% once inflation and cost pressures are accounted for.
These demands risk driving short-term cost-cutting rather than long-term reform. And with the dissolution of NHS England creating uncertainty around funding, many Trusts are left unsure how to progress digital projects or access new transformation resources.
That’s why the ability to control processes and maximise the use of existing funds has never been more important. Without clear safeguards, this reform risks deepening — not solving — the problems it aims to fix.
The five priorities the Government must get right
If this is to be more than another missed opportunity, reform must go beyond governance. It must address how care is delivered, how systems connect, and how change is managed.
Real transformation starts at the operational level and not the boardroom. Intelligent transformation is the key: designing systems and processes around people, powered by data, and driven by continuous improvement.
1. Follow the patient, not the process
The system must be designed around the full patient journey, not organisational silos. Clinicians cannot treat what they cannot see.
The 10-Year Health Plan promises to rebalance care around patients’ lives. But that vision depends on interoperability: the ability for systems to speak the same language, ensuring information flows seamlessly across GP, hospital, and community care.
At Nottingham University Hospitals, before rolling out electronic prescribing, we mapped every patient touchpoint — across wards, roles, and systems — to ensure digital tools matched real workflows. The result: fewer handover delays, better coordination, and safer prescribing.
That’s the difference between transformation that looks good on paper and transformation that works in practice.
2. Fix the way people work before you digitise it
Technology should amplify what works. Not hard-code what doesn’t.
Too often, new digital systems are implemented without addressing process inefficiencies first. This is where capability mapping comes in: understanding how departments actually operate, identifying breakdowns, and using technology to solve real problems, not hide them.
This approach prevents inefficiencies from being hard-wired into new systems. It ensures digital tools support — rather than disrupt — the way people work.
3. Stop draining staff to power broken systems
NHS staff don’t need resilience training. They need systems that work.
Transformation fatigue sets in when change demands extra effort but delivers little improvement. Staff want to be part of the solution, not the testing ground for poorly designed systems.
True reform must be collaborative. That means continuous feedback, co-design, and empowering teams to own change rather than endure it.
As we’ve seen in our NHS projects, co-creation reduces friction, simplifies workflows, and returns time to care. Transformation should make work easier, not harder.
4. Trust the people closest to the patient
Integrated Care Boards (ICBs) understand their communities — their needs, pressures, and digital maturity — better than any central body. They’re not a risk to reform; they’re the key to making it work.
The Government should set national standards and direction but give local teams the freedom to adapt solutions to their context. The most successful transformation programmes are those that flex to local realities, not those dictated by one-size-fits-all models.
5. Redefine what ‘good’ looks like
Dashboards don’t save lives. Better decisions do.
If the patient’s journey feels seamless for the system but painful for them, the metrics are wrong. The NHS needs to measure what matters: faster recovery, earlier diagnosis, fewer delays, and higher confidence in care.
Data should be actionable, not decorative. Every dataset should have purpose — who uses it, why it’s needed, and how it improves care. Transformation isn’t about collecting more data; it’s about using it intelligently to create meaningful outcomes.
A once-in-a-generation opportunity
This reform could be a defining moment for the NHS, but only if it tackles the operational challenges that sit beneath the headlines.
We need to stop pushing transformation onto NHS staff and start building it with them. Real reform means designing services that fit around people, not the other way around.
That’s where effective change management becomes essential. It’s not about training slides or communication plans. At its best, it’s the art and science of helping people adopt new ways of working with confidence and clarity. When done well, it connects strategy to behaviour, surfacing blockers and ensuring change sticks.
At Differentis, we’re working with NHS Trusts across the UK to help leaders map capabilities, define value, and make confident progress, even when the funding picture is uncertain. Our focus is on intelligent transformation: operational insight, people-first design, and change management that delivers measurable results.
The NHS doesn’t just need a new structure. It needs a new strategy. One built on data, collaboration, and human insight.
If the Government gets this right, it could mark the beginning of a truly smarter, more connected NHS.
A once-in-a-generation opportunity to make transformation real.
How East Riding Council is using data to drive energy decisions across its estate
As the public sector accelerates its decarbonisation efforts, East Riding of Yorkshire Council is proving that sustainability can unlock innovation, efficiency, and lasting impact.
With an urgency to decarbonise the public sector estate, one council is demonstrating that sustainability can be a driving force for transformative change.
In a recent interview, TEAM Energy spoke with Robin Barmby and Stephen Fisher, Principal Asset Officers at East Riding of Yorkshire Council, to explore their pioneering energy initiatives and strides in operational efficiency. Their approach demonstrates how data-led decision-making and creative solutions can deliver meaningful environmental impact alongside substantial cost savings.
Driffield Leisure Centre Solar Car Port
Implementing energy efficiency measures
East Riding of Yorkshire Council has made significant advances in solar energy, investing more than £2 million in rooftop installations since 2012, supported by the Feed-in Tariff initiative. Several schools have benefited from similar projects, and one of the most rewarding efforts involved revisiting sites initially deemed unsuitable and finding creative ways to install panels.
“We’ve had the most success with our solar panel rollouts,” said Robin Barmby, Principal Asset Officer. “Revisiting sites that were initially omitted and finding innovative ways to install panels has been particularly rewarding.”
The council also launched a small-scale solar farm connected to a caravan park—one of its highest energy consumers—where solar generation aligns well with peak usage. In addition, Stephen Fisher, also a Principal Asset Officer, highlighted the integration of photovoltaic (PV) systems into the council’s annual roofing programme for council-owned housing. Combined with insulation upgrades, this has proven to be the most cost-effective method for improving Energy Performance Certificate (EPC) ratings in residential properties.
Elevating energy efficiency projects through training and technology
Stephen Fisher emphasised the importance of strategic training with facilities managers, particularly on optimising Building Management Systems (BMS) to reduce energy usage. The council’s Climate Change team also plays a crucial role in raising awareness and promoting good environmental behaviours across the organisation.
Robin Barmby discussed the vital role of technology in identifying and delivering energy savings. By using benchmarking and submetering, the council has been able to pinpoint the exact zones or equipment within buildings driving poor performance. This data-led approach has made the entire process far more efficient and impactful than traditional energy audits alone.
Innovative solutions with significant impact
One of the most effective technologies implemented by the council is the Variable Speed Drive (VSD), which allows precise control of motor speed based on actual demand. This technology has been particularly impactful in leisure centres, where it has led to significant energy savings with a quick payback period.
Achieving cost savings and carbon reduction
The council’s solar projects have had the most significant impact on cost savings and carbon reduction. Additionally, LED street lighting upgrades with percentage dimming have contributed to long-term savings across the estate.
Securing funding for energy efficiency initiatives
East Riding of Yorkshire Council has been proactive in securing funding for its energy efficiency projects. Over the past 12 months, the council has secured approximately £6.5 million in funding, enabling nearly £17 million worth of project work. This includes funding from the Public Sector Decarbonisation Scheme (PSDS), the Mayoral Fund, the Swimming Pool Support Fund via Sport England, and Warm Homes funding.
Advice for other councils
Robin Barmby advises other councils to start with reducing demand, then focus on efficiency, and finally look at renewables. Stephen Fisher adds that data analysis and benchmarking should be the first step to understanding performance across the estate and prioritise interventions.
Andrea Shoel, Business Development Manager at TEAM Energy, said:
“East Riding of Yorkshire Council’s approach to energy efficiency is a testament to the power of data-driven decisions and innovative solutions. Their success story is an inspiration for other councils aiming to achieve similar goals.”
Looking ahead
East Riding of Yorkshire Council’s energy journey is a powerful example of what’s possible when data, innovation, and strategic thinking come together. By focusing on demand reduction, efficiency, and smart deployment of renewables, the council has delivered measurable carbon and cost savings. Their success underscores the importance of long-term vision, internal capability, and dedication to revisiting and rethinking legacy projects.
Overall sentiment towards the new legislation was focused on integration and simplification, with almost 80% saying HMRC needs to do more to integrate its systems and simplify its processes
75% suggest they will be looking for technology to help manage compliance and conduct real-time audits.
Varun Monteiro
As HMRC announces its decision to introduce Joint and Several Liability in April 2026, new research from Finity has found that almost 80% of recruitment agencies want the tax authority to do more to integrate its systems and simplify processes.
Commissioned by recruitment back office platform, Finity, the survey of employees within finance departments in temporary recruitment agencies explored sentiment towards the landmark ‘Tackling Non-Compliance in the Umbrella Company Market’ legislation, set to take effect from 6 April, 2026.
Integration, simplification and technology is key
An overwhelming four-fifths (79%) of respondents state that HMRC needs to do more to integrate its systems and simplify processes. This was followed by the need for technologies to support adherence to these new legal obligations, with three-quarters (75%) suggesting they will be looking for technology to help manage compliance and conduct real-time audits.
Varun Monteiro, CEO at Finity, said: “The latest update from HMRC marks a welcome, but significant change for umbrella companies and agencies, with accountability pushed further up the supply chain and significant financial repercussions for errors.
“However, our data shows a clear call from recruitment businesses for urgent action from HMRC and the broader industry when it comes to systems, processes and enabling technologies.
“Our research, combined with our detailed whitepaper, presents a bold call to action for HMRC to provide the digital infrastructure required to tackle compliance at source. While HMRC’s accompanying Transformation Roadmap is a positive step forward, it is clear better integration and the ability to cross-check payslips with HMRC data through simple APIs, directly within payroll systems, is vital.
“Only by making essential tax information more accessible and instant, can the recruitment sector be truly empowered to verify their tax liabilities efficiently and with confidence.”
The need for a modernised and transparent tax system, powered by technology
Dale Simkiss, compliance expert and Non-Executive Director at Finity, added: “Currently, businesses in the recruitment sector face significant challenges in verifying whether tax liabilities have been accurately reported and settled in their supply chain.
“As the industry prepares for a new legislative landscape, now is the time to modernise the way we manage tax compliance, which will help ease the burden on the sector, mitigate financial risks and create a more transparent and trustworthy tax system.”
Varun Monteiro, concluded: “This will be made even more challenging with HMRC’s new regulations which seek to enforce stronger measures for tax transparency and accountability.
“As our research has indicated, there is strong desire for new technology, not least because of the lack of efficient, real-time access to tax data, which is likely to hamper efforts to comply, leaving businesses vulnerable to compliance failures, fraud or reputational damage.”
To view the full report, which outlines the roadmap Finity is proposing to help HMRC and the wider market deliver a modern and compliant tax system, please visit www.finity.co.uk/tax-compliance-whitepaper/.
A new whitepaper from Blue Frontier details key opportunities and challenges for NHS trusts amidst ongoing digital transformation.
Interoperability, patient access concerns, and public fears over AI remain prominent challenges for the NHS to overcome.
The research uses a combination of primary and secondary data to provide a comprehensive view of the sector.
James Fry
As the NHS quickly approaches its March 2026 deadline for foundational digital transformation, a new whitepaper from Blue Frontierwarns that interoperability, patient access concerns, and public fears over AI could slow future progress. ‘NHS Under Pressure: Challenges and Opportunities Facing NHS Digital Transformation in 2025 and Beyond’ aims to empower key NHS decision makers when planning their ongoing digital transformation strategy to deliver enhanced patient engagement and experience, and improved operational efficiencies while relieving resource pressures.
This report brings brand new market insights to the forefront, with primary data collected and visualised by Blue Frontier. The data in this whitepaper consists of social listening and mentions data, collected across a wide range of digital channels, including online news, social networks, podcasts, forums, and blog sites, gathered throughout the period of August 2024 to September 2025. This data has been bolstered with additional secondary information and third-party data from sources including NHS England, GOV.UK, Cambridge University, and Deloitte.
Key points include interoperability being seen as the most prominent challenge to NHS digital transformation in relation to automation, data exchange, real-time intelligence, and adopting cloud-native platforms. Between August 2024 and September 2025, there has been a 135% increase in the total number of online mentions relating to the NHS and artificial intelligence or machine learning, when compared to the previous year. However, fear and anger are the most common emotions felt by the public in conversations about AI and the NHS, accounting for just under 60% combined, with joy closely behind on 26%.
A crucial challenge for data security lies in regulatory compliance, with legislation and compliance making up 20% of discussions. Low digital literacy rates, in relation to balancing patient access and ease of use, continue to be an opportunity and a challenge, with conversations increasing by 28% from March 2025 to September 2025 compared with the previous period. Finally, budgets and costs remain a prevalent challenge for NHS trusts seeking to integrate digital transformation projects, with around 20% of the total data pool specifically referencing costs and resources as a challenge or barrier to entry.
James Fry, Managing Director at Blue Frontier, said:
“In bringing this information to the NHS at this crucial time, we’re further supporting public sector initiatives that improve efficiency and delivery of service in the UK. Responsibly harnessing technology is an effective way to reduce costs and positively impact people’s lives, and this whitepaper will provide greater insight and aid decision-making for those striving to make an impactful difference.”
To read the full report and learn more about the opportunities and challenges facing NHS trusts and what they should do to leverage digital transformation effectively, go to the Blue Frontier website
Following a highly successful 2024 event that brought together SIAM professionals, thought leaders, and industry experts from around the world, the Scopism Service North Conference is back. Remaining in Manchester, the event takes place on Monday, 3rd November, and promises to be even bigger and better in 2025.
Reflecting on 2024
The 2024 Service North Conference was a celebration of everything that makes the SIAM community unique; collaboration, innovation, and an unwavering commitment to driving service integration forward. With high-profile speakers from across the industry, engaging panel discussions, and cutting-edge insights, the event set a new benchmark for what a SIAM-focused gathering can be.
What can we expect in 2025
This year’s Service North Conference will once again gather the brightest minds in SIAM and service management for a day of insight, collaboration, and networking. The agenda is packed with forward-thinking sessions designed to inform and inspire, including:
· BoK SIAM Refresh – Get the inside track on the evolution of the SIAM Body of Knowledge, directly from the team behind the update.
· Tackling IT Challenges – The BoK author group will take to the stage to discuss real-world challenges facing IT leaders today, and how SIAM can offer practical solutions.
· Scopism SIAM Assured – In Practice – What does it mean to be SIAM Assured? This session examines how the assurance model operates in practice and the tangible benefits it provides to organisations.
…but that’s not all, there’s much more in the pipeline. Expect case studies, panel discussions, and practical sessions packed with takeaways you can apply immediately.
Event for SIAM Professionals
Service North isn’t just another industry conference; it’s the definitive space for SIAM knowledge sharing, innovation, and community building. Whether you’re a seasoned expert or just beginning your SIAM journey, this is where cutting-edge insights meet real-world implementation.
Attendees tell us that Service North offers excellent value, not just in the quality of the content, but in the opportunities to connect with peers, partners, and potential customers.
Successive UK governments have a terrible track record when it comes to large-scale projects. Almost universally, they are either late, over budget, deliver less than promised – or all three. Some, like HS2, are never completed at all.
In this edited extract from The Delivery Gap, Jonathan Simcock explores how arrogance thwarted the NHS National Programme.
In February 2002, Prime Minister Tony Blair hosted a seminar in Downing Street. He was convinced that the National Health Service in England could be transformed with the help of better IT. It was said that he had been enthused about the subject after a discussion with Microsoft CEO Bill Gates. Blair himself was there for less than an hour, but those present, including the Department of Health ministerial team of Alan Milburn and Lord Hunt, senior executives from NHS England, and several senior representatives of the IT industry, came away convinced that a step-change in the use of computers could make enough of a difference to NHS performance that Labour would be rewarded by voters at the next election.
Milburn and the NHS committed to present the Prime Minister with a national implementation plan by the end of May. It would set a timetable for hospitals and GPs to benefit from a network of new systems. Implementation of new IT would start within a year. A year earlier, Chancellor Gordon Brown had commissioned banker Derek Wanless to investigate what was required to turn the NHS in England into a service which provided safer, higher quality treatment. Amongst other findings, Wanless was scathing about the NHS’s use of IT. He concluded that, ‘A major programme will be required to establish the infrastructure and to ensure that common standards are established. Central standards must be set and rigorously applied.’
The prospectus for a massive IT Project for Health, to be known as the National Programme, was published in June. It promised greater central control and ruthless standardisation. The scope of the programme was rather vague but would include new infrastructure and a number of services including a national booking service, a national prescriptions service, and a national health records service which would be accessible round the clock from anywhere in the country. By September, the National Programme was launched, and an external expert had been hired to run it. His name was Richard Granger, a consultant from Deloitte. He had no background in health, but he did have a reputation for hard-nosed delivery.
On appointment, he was reputed to be the country’s highest paid civil servant. Granger quickly developed a plan for procuring the new systems. To counter the risk of lashing the NHS to a single IT provider, Granger decided to divide the country into five regions and procure a monopoly service into each one. As with the Astute Submarine project a decade earlier, the idea was to generate an intense competition and to load the supply chain up with as much risk as possible. In the National Programme, suppliers would be paid nothing until they delivered working services. And anyone not performing would have their region taken from them and redistributed to the other suppliers. Granger told the media that if you are using huskies to pull you to the pole, then “when one of the dogs goes lame, and begins to slow the others down, they are shot. They are then chopped up and fed to the other dogs. The survivors work harder, not only because they’ve had a meal, but also because they have seen what will happen should they themselves go lame.”
By the end of 2003, the five regional contracts had been let to four providers: BT, Accenture, Fujitsu and an American company, CSC, which won two regions. Although there were four service providers, they had between them only two developers for the most important of the new software solutions. These electronic patient record systems would allow information to be exchanged seamlessly between healthcare professionals, managers and patients. BT and Fujitsu selected a US company, IDX, and Accenture and CSC chose the UK firm, iSoft. The ten-year contracts had a total value of £6.2 billion and Granger’s commercially aggressive approach had won him plenty of fans in the centre of government.
But the input from clinicians into what the new systems would have to do was superficial to say the least. A director of the NHS Information Authority told the Public Accounts Committee two years later that the consultation process amounted to ‘asking some clinicians to comment on hundreds of pages of text in systems-speak in the space of a few weeks’. The Chair of the National Clinical Advisory Board told the same Public Accounts Committee that the NHS National Programme “was like being in a juggernaut lorry going up the M1 and it did not really matter where you went as long as you arrived somewhere on time”.
Perhaps in recognition of the lack of clinical understanding in the project, Professor Aidon Halligan, the deputy Chief Medical Officer, was appointed to work alongside Granger as joint head of the project in the spring of 2004. But it was too late to influence the contracts which had already been signed. These health experts found escape routes from the project, but none of them went public. The director of the NHS Information Authority was made redundant, the Chair of the National Clinical Advisory Board was asked to resign, and Professor Halligan quit his role in the project after six months, although he stayed on as deputy Chief Medical Officer.
Procured in a hurry, and without sufficient involvement from NHS professionals, neither of the electronic patient record system developers, IDX or iSoft, were able to get to grips with the complexities of healthcare provision in the NHS. The extremely aggressive commercial approach imposed by Granger produced predictably miserable results.
A large part of the problem was underappreciation of the fundamental differences between how healthcare is provided on different sides of the Atlantic. In the United States, the health system is administered so as to bill insurers or patients for every intervention. This isn’t how UK hospitals work. And no-one in the US health system has to administer patient waiting lists – a matter of huge importance in the NHS. Eventually there were only two regional suppliers and two electronic patient record system developers, and none of them were making acceptable progress. Parts of the clinical community were now in open revolt.
One health professional posted his disgust: ‘Now and then I check myself from hatred of what Richard Granger stands for and has done to NHS IT, and then the sheer arrogance and ignorance of his public statements brings me back.’ It was evident by 2007 that centrally implemented system deployments were not achieving the project’s objectives. Although the project limped on, 2008 was the year in which hope seems to have left the project team. Richard Granger exited quietly at the beginning of the year. Accenture and Fujitsu were gone. BT and CSC were facing huge losses. Neither of the solution providers was delivering software that was up to the job. Virtually nothing was being deployed into NHS hospitals.
The problems, always an open secret in the NHS, were now making national news. The Guardian reported that where new systems were being deployed, lack of patient data was causing delays in Accident and Emergency, cancer treatment and planned operations. Patients were exposed to the risk of infection while records were being updated manually, and in one Trust complaints from the public about their service tripled. In what could have been the final nail in the coffin, the NAO reported that the programme had largely failed to deliver on its central objective. Eventually, after the 2010 general election, the Coalition Government killed off the NHS National Programme.
To be fair to the hundreds of professionals in the National Programme over the years, there were some strands of the project that were completed and eventually gained an enduring place in the NHS. These included ‘Choose and Book’, which allowed patients to select a hospital outpatient appointment from a range of options while sitting with their GP, and ‘National Spine’, a messaging service which allowed authorised users to access a high-level summary of patient records. But the electronic patient record systems at the heart of the programme were a complete failure, which cost years of potential improvement across the NHS.
Overall, the National Programme had been a disaster. The project is a tragic case-study of how not to manage IT enabled change. You start with blindly ambitious but inexact requirements and proceed through commercially naive contracts with impossible timeframes. The results are entirely predictable. The National Programme was swamped by technical and delivery complexity. The systems’ end-users were kept as far away from involvement as possible. Lengthening timelines were met by refusal to acknowledge reality and the project ploughed on until it finally suffered the huskies’ fate that Granger had predicted for some of the IT companies.
The years lost during the failed NHS National Programme have seriously retarded the digital transformation of health provision in England. Twenty-two years after the programme was conceived, a new Health Secretary, Wes Streeting, asked surgeon, academic and peer Lord Darzi to diagnose the ills of the NHS. Amongst many other criticisms Darzi took aim at the NHS’s failure to embrace digital technologies.
“The NHS, in common with most health systems, continues to struggle to fully realise the benefits of information technology. It always seems to add to the workload of clinicians rather than releasing more time to care by simplifying the inevitable administrative tasks that arise. The extraordinary richness of NHS datasets is largely untapped either in clinical care, service planning, or research.”
r2c, a leading provider of connected fleet and workshop management solutions, has launched a new Incident Management feature, designed to help HGV fleets digitise and streamline the way they capture, track and resolve incidents.
Available now as part of the r2c connected platform, Incident Management helps to revolutionise incident reporting, resolution, and compliance for the transport industry, allowing operators to take control of incidents, near-misses, and vehicle damage from the moment they happen.
Ash Connell
Whether it’s a minor scrape or a major accident, the Incident Management feature ensures nothing slips through the cracks by digitising every step of the process.
By replacing outdated, administration-heavy paper-based processes with structured digital workflows, the system ensures faster resolutions, improved communication, and boosts compliance standards and operational transparency – all backed by a complete audit trail and real-time visibility.
“When an incident happens, things often move very fast. Many different factors come into play, from reaction, rescue and repair to issues such as operational vulnerability, compliance and risk management,” said Ash Connell, r2c Commercial Director.
“Our new Incident Management feature ensures these disparate strands are tied together so nothing gets missed, and everything happens when it should.”
Users are able to complete immediate, structured incident logging so incidents can be reported when they occur, or retrospectively, with key details added for accuracy and compliance.
Comprehensive tracking means that within each incident fleets can manage a range of scenarios, from VOR to warranty claims across multiple assets.
It also uses integrated communication tools, which can be set up to send action requests to repairers, incident managers, and stakeholders. This keeps all parties connected and informed throughout the lifecycle of the incident, from initial report through investigation, resolution, and close-out, including vehicles, scenarios, contacts, repairers, and job sheets.
As well as being integral to the management of specific incidents, data-driven Insights are also available, using built-in analytics which highlight trends, identify high-risk areas, and uncover root causes, enabling preventative measures to improve fleet safety performance.
“With this launch, we’re giving fleets the tools to act faster and work smarter when an incident occurs, while also making strategic decisions that improve both safety and efficiency,” said Connell.
“Our Incident Management module doesn’t just track what’s happened – it can help prevent it from happening again.”
This year’s Healthcare Excellence Through Technology at London ExCeL is the first opportunity for health and social care to discuss the 10 Year Plan. From the agenda to all new features like the Roundtable Zone and AI Spotlight, the show on 7-8 October has been set-up to make the most of that opportunity.
The government published its 10 Year Plan for England as the NHS prepared to mark its 77th anniversary at the start of July.
As predicted, the plan called for reform through three shifts: from hospital to community, treatment to prevention, and analogue to digital. The plan promised better IT infrastructure, a single patient record, a massively expanded NHS App, and a huge role for AI.
But there is no delivery chapter yet, and no alignment with the funding coming out of the Treasury’s spending review. So, the health and care ecosystem and its suppliers are still waiting for much of the crucial detail on how its vision will be put into practice.
Right time, right now
Some of that detail may be revealed at this year’s Healthcare Excellence Through Technology, which takes place at ExCeL London from 7-8 October.
“HETT Show 2025 is the first significant opportunity that the health tech community will have had to discuss the 10 Year Health Plan, and the agenda has been planned to inform that debate,” says Rikki Bhachu, head of marketing at organiser GovNet.
“We have also created a host of new features on the show floor to encourage free thinking, support collaboration, and introduce the NHS to suppliers with the innovation it needs, with a spotlight on the potentially transformative impact of AI.”
Powerful keynotes
This year, the HETT agenda will be delivered across five theatres, focusing on: digital maturity; infrastructure, data and cyber security; digitally empowered experience; integrated care; and workforce, adoption and productivity.
The focus on the 10 Year Health Plan will start on day one with a keynote address from NHS England. On day two, Avi Mehra from IBM, the co-chair of the HETT Steering Committee, will lead a high-powered panel.
Speakers from NICE, The Health Foundation, and RAND Europe will discuss how to navigate the new normal, and how the system will adapt and change in response to the plan. Sonia Patel, chief technology officer at NHS England, will also be taking part in a fireside chat that will explore the shift from analogue to digital in more detail.
Inspiring real-life examples
Other sessions across the show will discuss the good work trusts are already doing, the impact of initiatives that pre-date the plan but will support its delivery, and the potential of some of its specific IT initiatives.
Kevin Percival from Ashford and St Peter’s Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust, will talk about the impact that digitally transformed pathways are having on its teams and patients on a panel with Vital Hub.
William Monaghan, from University Hospitals of Leicester NHS Trust, and Becky Taylor, from the University Hospitals of Northamptonshire NHS Group, will discuss the different approaches their organisations are taking to adopting the Federated Data Platform.
While Rachel Dunscombe, the co-chair and chief industry advisor for openEHR, will lead a panel on the potential of the single patient record. Speakers from Quantexa, the Artificial Intelligence Centre for Value Based Healthcare, Imperial College Health Partners, and The Kings Fund, will discuss how it could drive safer, smarter and more connected care.
A rare chance to hear from a decorated Olympian
It’s not just the technicalities of policy, technology, or even funding that will be key to the 10 Year Health Plan’s delivery. Leadership, teamwork, and creating the conditions that enable success will also be essential.
In recognition of this, HETT has created a special opportunity for attendees to hear from Dame Laura Kenny, a multi-Olympic and Worlds medallist, and Britain’s most successful female Olympian.
In a fireside chat on day two, she will reflect on how she rose to the top of her sport, her experience of the NHS, and the importance of exercise in building health and resilience. HETT VIPs will also have the opportunity to meet Dame Laura in person.
Navigating the innovation on offer
HETT has created an opportunity for influential health tech leaders to apply to be a HETT VIP. This unlocks access to dedicated content streams, the opportunity to contribute content, and the chance to meet a community of like-minded peers.
It’s just one of a number of options to get more out of the event. Visitors will also be able to join a new digital estates trail that will guide them across the show floor and connect them with leading suppliers and solution providers.
Attendees can drop into the Start-up Hub, to meet young and innovative companies. They will also be able to dip into a live podcast recording with the Ministry of Health Tech, a fast-growing network of future leaders that explores the trends shaping the industry.
Conversations, critical
For the second year running, HETT will open with a pre-show drinks reception and Rockaoke singalong at The Fox on 6th October from 7:30pm, to raise money for The Brain Tumour Charity.
On the day of the show itself, there will be plenty of spaces to stop, power devices, recharge, and network over the two days of the event. Whether people meet at The Rest Stop Lounge, the Roundtable Area, or the Networking Lounge, there’s likely to be one, key topic of conversation; the 10 Year Health Plan.
Rikki Bhachu says: “We know that the plan has set out some clear ambitions for its three shifts. At HETT, these ambitions aren’t just talking points, they’re at the centre of everything we do.
“From our agenda and speaker sessions to show features and exhibitor spotlights, everything is designed to support real-world delivery. If you’re leading service redesign, driving local prevention, or scaling digital innovation, this is an event you can’t afford to miss.”
By Emma Swann, partner and education law specialist at Forbes Solicitors
Special Educational Needs and Disabilities (SEND) Tribunals are a hot topic for schools and local authorities, with rules being enforced for presenting evidence at hearings. Emma Swann, a partner specialising in education law at Forbes Solicitors, provides a run-down of what schools need to know to avoid potential penalties.
Spotlight on SEND support
There’s a lot of interest and anticipation surrounding the provision of SEND education. Government is due to publish a whitepaper in the Autumn, outlining SEND reforms and there are calls for this to include the abolishment of SEND Tribunals.
Reports suggest there was a 55% rise in SEND Tribunal appeals during 2023-2024 (SENDIST 2024 statistics), while The Law Society Gazette reports 96% of such cases are lost by local authorities. It’s estimated this is costing tens and hundreds of millions of pounds – funds which could be redirected to delivering SEND support – and that interventions are required to address an unsustainable issue.
Emma Swann
We’ll have to wait for publication of the government’s whitepaper to see if SEND Tribunals are abolished, but this seems unlikely. During the summer, The Department for Education (DfE) indicated that forthcoming reforms do not include any such plans. Where we do have more certainty, and a point that schools should take heed of, is guidance for improving the presentation of evidence at SEND Tribunal hearings.
Focus on evidence bundles
A new Practice Direction (No. 1 of 2025) has been issued by the Courts and Tribunals Judiciary for evidence bundles at SEND Tribunal hearings. This was reportedly introduced because of an increase in irrelevant information being submitted. Judge Meleri Tudur referenced that page limits have existed for a number of years, which determine the total number of pages that can be put forward. These limits will now be enforceable, and non-compliance could see schools face penalties.
What are evidence bundles?
An evidence bundle is a collation of documents which comprise the written evidence to be considered by the SEND Tribunal. Bundles are prepared by a school and / or local authority (with support from their legal team) and must be submitted by the relevant deadlines in each case. Any information that is not included in the bundle, and which does not meet deadlines, will not be considered by the Tribunal.
A best-practice bundle should clearly and easily allow the Tribunal and all associated parties to navigate through the history of the claim. This may include documents relating to the position and claims of the relevant parties involved, Tribunal orders, any requests made by the different parties and attendance forms. Bundles should be separated into clearly defined and labelled sections, with an index hyperlinking to each relevant document.
It’s also generally considered good practice for evidence bundles to be succinct. Page limits should not be viewed as targets or a benchmark. The new Practice Direction has been introduced to encourage greater consideration about what information is included, to make bundles more effective and user-friendly for all parties.
What do schools need to know about the Practice Direction?
Tribunal Practice Directions are typically issued to provide formal instruction and guidance. In this instance, this refers to detailed rules about how schools present evidence to a SEND Tribunal.
The rules stipulate that the core part of an evidence bundle must not exceed 100 pages, while supplementary evidence must be limited to 200 pages. It’s reported that bundles have contained blank forms or pages and duplicates of the same documents. The Practice Direction has been issued to remind schools that this isn’t allowed.
Bundles must, where possible, enable ‘optical character recognition’, which makes pictures word-searchable. There are also specific rules for fonts, the format of a bundle and orientation – evidence must be arranged, so that documents can be viewed without having to be rotated. There are requirements to organise bundles in a chronological order, and schools must ensure an accurate, hyperlinked index reflects this and supports straightforward, easy navigation of the information.
As well as reiterating what should be included in an evidence bundle, the Practice Direction also outlines what should not be included. For example, any correspondence and email threads between associated parties are prohibited, unless this information is relevant to an Education Health and Care Plan (EHCP). Any professional reports and school reports more than three years old and draft versions of an EHCPs must also be omitted from evidence bundles.
What are the penalties for non-compliant evidence bundles?
The Practice Direction references that non-compliant bundles may be rejected by a Tribunal, unless there is an accompanying note explaining why non-compliance is necessary. Non-compliance may also cause a Tribunal to vacate a hearing date at short notice, strike out the case in its entirety or prevent a party from participating further. In certain limited circumstances, a costs order may also be made against a party presenting an evidence bundle that does not meet SEND Tribunal rules.
Any failure to meet Tribunal deadlines to produce the evidence bundle could mean that a school or local authority is automatically barred from further participation in the proceedings and may lead to the school or local authority’s response to the appeal being
struck out. The Tribunal may choose to reinstate the proceedings, but this would be at the discretion of a Judge.
The issuing of the Practice Direction implies that the Courts and Tribunals Judiciary service will place SEND Tribunal evidence packages under greater scrutiny. Schools are best placed allowing plenty of time to compile evidence bundles, using Tribunal rules as a check list for preparing evidence and working with specialist advisors to ensure information presented at hearings is robust, relevant and compliant.
For further information about preparing for SEND Tribunals, contact Emma Swann at Forbes Solicitors.
By Nicola Casburn, Solutions Consultant, Brightly Software
When it comes to managing their bridges, UK councils are facing an increasing number of challenges. This article explores how digital tools, such as Confirm from Brightly Software, a Siemens Company, can empower them to make data-driven decisions, carry out proactive maintenance, and centralise the oversight of their entire network of assets.
Bridges are a key part of the UK’s highways and transportation system, which facilitate the connectivity and the transit of communities while keeping them safe. Currently, it is becoming increasingly difficult for UK councils to manage their bridges to the best of their ability – because they’re working with shrinking budgets and resources. For many local councils, this isn’t just the case for the management of bridges, it’s also the case for the management of their entire asset networks.
Adding to the issue: there is a current skills shortage of highly trained engineers that are required to maintain the complexities of bridges and structures. This skills gap is being plugged with contractors – many of whom use their own systems to record the findings of inspections, leading to siloed data across diverse systems.
Samuel Beckett Bridge
Other challenges faced by UK Councils managing bridges include: ageing infrastructure, as many bridges were constructed decades ago and require ongoing monitoring to maintain their strength and safety structurally; budget constraints, as limited funding requires prioritisation for the maintenance of tasks, which can lead to deferred repairs and increased costs in the long run; the impact of climate change, as flooding, extreme temperatures and erosion pose growing threats to bridges’ stability; and a lack of a centralised data, which makes long-term planning difficult.
Leverage technology for smarter asset management
By using digital tools, such as those from Brightly Software, a Siemens Company, UK councils can rely on data-driven decisions to help them prioritise critical works, mitigate risks, carry out proactive maintenance and promote the longevity of their assets, including bridges.
Brightly’s lifecycle asset management solution, Confirm, is a user-friendly and robust system that supports smart management to facilitate local authorities’ service improvements. It centralises assets to simplify and streamline the processes involved with managing them.
For the management of bridges, Confirm enables inspections to be undertaken according to industry guidance, in a consistent manner, and inspection results can be recorded on-
site via the intuitive mobile app, ConfirmConnect. Confirm also supports data analytics; for example, it is able to report on BCI (Bridge Condition Index) condition scores, as well as capture data required for Structures Asset Valuation and Investment toolkit (SAVI) analyses. The intuitive system is also able to manage and prioritise a work bank of maintenance activities that have been identified.
In addition, the cutting-edge solution continually and intuitively scrutinises information that’s entered; handles complex analytics, and flags inefficiencies to avoid duplication of tasks or spending. The intuitive system generates data and reports, highlighting the presence of all assets in a given area, to enable works to be better planned and prioritised depending on the status of any given asset.
Confirm also facilitates preventative maintenance, helping its users to operate more cost efficiently in the long run.
Although the network of assets supporting UK roads is vast – from bridges and gantries, carriageways and footways, drainage and streetlights, traffic signals and retaining walls – with more detail and understanding of asset behaviours, local authorities can start to proactively manage maintenance schedules based on historical trends. Brightly’s digital tools can help them to achieve this.
By Prof. Oleg Kvlividze, MD, PhD, Provost, New Anglia University
Prof. Oleg Kvlividze, MD, PhD
Last week, YouGov released their latest survey results around Higher Education. The results showed that Two thirds of students in England and Wales say university is poor value for money.
Provost of New Anglia University, Prof. Oleg Kvlividze, MD, PhD, shared his thoughts.
“It’s clear from the YouGov survey that many students are worried about whether the rising cost of university represents fair value. That concern is understandable, especially given the current fees and repayment terms. What is encouraging, though, is that most students still say they are satisfied with their courses and believe their degrees will help them into good jobs.
“At New Anglia University, we see how having a degree opens doors. The benefits are not only financial, although graduates do tend to earn more over their lifetimes. It’s also about the confidence, problem-solving skills, and flexibility that higher education gives people, and it’s these qualities that employers consistently tell us they value.”
“We’ve also welcomed a growing number of international students into our medical school. They choose New Anglia University because of the quality of our teaching, the strength of our links with NHS trusts, and the supportive environment we provide. Their contribution enriches our university community and reflects the standing of UK higher education globally.”
“The debate on how universities should be funded is an important one, and it will continue. But the bigger picture is that higher education remains one of the most important investments someone can make in their future, for their career, in their personal development, and in what they can give back to society.”
“A degree is still one of the most powerful investments a person can make, not just in their career, but in the skills and confidence that last a lifetime. While students are right to question costs, the fact remains that higher education consistently opens doors to better opportunities.
“At New Anglia University we’ve seen a strong rise in overseas students studying medicine, drawn by our clinical teaching, NHS partnerships, and welcoming community.
“The funding debate is important, but we mustn’t lose sight of the bigger picture: higher education changes lives. University is about more than salary returns, it’s about developing resilience, adaptability, and the ability to contribute to society.”
The successful go-live for the order communications system lays a foundation for further IT developments at the Trust and its pathology network
Dartford and Gravesham NHS Trust has taken a significant step towards a more digital future by rolling out electronic test ordering using Clinisys ICE.
The trust deployed the order communications system to around 2,000 clinical users across all of its wards, the maternity and paediatrics units, the emergency and same day emergency care departments, and outpatients in June.
Previously, clinicians placed orders for imaging and pathology investigations on the trust’s 25-year-old patient administration system or on paper. The move to ICE means they can use a modern, intuitive system designed to make the process faster and safer.
The implementation also paves the foundations for further IT developments. The trust is looking to procure a new electronic patient record, while its laboratories will deploy the Clinisys WinPath laboratory information management system next year.
Once the new LIMS is in place, clinicians will also be able to receive test results electronically through ICE, improving turnaround times and making more information available to clinicians for diagnosis and treatment.
Guy Sisson, a Consultant Gastroenterologist and the Trust’s Chief Clinical Information Officer, and the Senior Responsible Officer for the project said: “This has been a long-running project that has really picked up speed over the past year.
“Once we decided on a big-bang go-live, our project team, our IT team, Clinisys, and our PAS supplier all worked together to make it work. It was almost like a hackathon, with everybody in a room making it happen.
“Since then, the feedback has been how intuitive the system is. It has been received very, very well. And it supports the next steps on our digital journey: turning off paper, implementing a new LIMS, introducing digital results reporting and, eventually, deploying a new EPR.”
The implementation of Clinisys ICE at Dartford and Gravesham is also part of a wider series of pathology IT developments in the Kent and Medway Pathology Network.
This is a partnership of seven laboratories across three pathology services at four NHS trusts: Dartford and Gravesham, Medway, Maidstone and Tunbridge Wells, and East Kent Hospitals University.
The network wants to create a single pathology platform, by implementing Clinisys WinPath at all seven laboratories, and making ICE available to all the hospital clinicians and GP surgeries that order tests from them.
The extension of ICE to GPs is already well underway. In a separate project, GPs moved from paper to digital ordering for radiology tests conducted at Dartford and Gravesham in February.
A second tranche of practices started using ICE to order radiology tests from East Kent Hospitals University in June. The next step will be for these practices to start using ICE for pathology testing.
GPs across the rest of the network will move to ICE as their local laboratories go-live with their new LIMS. Mo Khan, Programme Director-Digital, at Dartford and Gravesham, said that having GPs, hospital clinicians, and laboratories on the same IT platform will deliver significant benefits.
“We will have access to the results of tests ordered by GPs, and they will have access to the results of tests ordered in hospital,” he said. “That should mean fewer repeat tests will be needed, and clinicians will have more information on which to make decisions about their patients.”
He added: “It has taken time to get to this point, and the project has experienced a lot of challenges. But everybody involved, including the suppliers, have worked together really well, and delivered the project to a high standard, as expected by our staff, with minimal post-implementation issues.”
Clinisys has put substantial resources into developing ICE in recent years. The system has a new user interface, which Dartford and Gravesham is using, and has been built out to support information sharing across sites, networks and regions.
Louise Dewing, Programme Manager at Clinisys said: “The roll-out of Clinisys ICE at Dartford and Gravesham shows just how important pathology is to modern healthcare and how modern pathology systems can act as the foundation for further digital developments.
“This implementation took place in a complex environment, but we were delighted to see it through to a successful go-live, and even more delighted to see how it has been received. We now look forward to supporting the roll-out of Clinisys WinPath and further ICE projects across the network.”
Patients receiving care at The Clatterbridge Cancer Centre NHS Foundation Trust are benefiting from a modern patient entertainment system that is providing important comfort during long hospital stays and helping to inform people about their care, whilst alleviating pressure on busy wards.
The trust has worked with Airwave Healthcare to deploy the MyCareTV service, along with 150 intuitive screens in patient rooms across the trust’s Liverpool in-patient hospital.
It means that patients, who can be away from their friends and families for extended periods of time as they receive care, can access content to help keep them stimulated during their recovery, helping to improve their experience.
Emma Daley, the trust’s chief nursing information officer, said: “As the chief nursing information officer at The Clatterbridge Cancer Centre, I am delighted with the positive impact of MyCareTV for our patients. This system keeps patients informed and entertained, enhancing their overall experience. It provides crucial comfort and normalisation during a potentially isolated long stay in hospital, supporting mental and physical well-being, and allows our nursing teams to focus more on direct patient care. We look forward to continuing to innovate and enhance the patient experience at our trust.”
Clatterbridge Cancer Hospital Liverpool
The MyCareTV service provides a new platform for the trust to host digitised information often held in printed leaflets, allowing patients to use screens in their rooms to access materials relating to their condition, care, and recovery.
Mindfulness content created by trust teams and provided by Airwave’s sister company TechLive, is also made available for patients, as well as condition-specific related videos that demonstrate relevant exercises and other insights that can help patients to better manage their care. Patients can also choose to cast media from their own devices.
David Croft, technical change manager at The Clatterbridge Cancer Centre, said: “We are only at the beginning of what’s possible through MyCareTV and what we can achieve for patients and busy staff. Already our patients tell us they are better entertained, with access to media content they would have in their homes, providing additional comfort for many who may be experiencing challenging treatment pathways and spending significant periods of time in hospital.
“The platform is very stable, user-friendly, and fully supported – and configurable options mean we can now explore ways to use the platform to integrate with other trust systems, and respond to appetite from our staff to better field patient requests to the right person, and release time for busy nursing teams.”
Provided as a fully managed service, the reliable service significantly reduces risk of downtime, and already means that nurses are no longer spending time logging requests for trust teams to repair televisions.
In-room screens can also be used to gather patient feedback on their care, whilst anticipated reductions in leaflet usage are expected to support sustainability initiatives.
Airwave Healthcare will also be providing patients for the first time with access through MyCareTV to live streaming of music events across a broad range of genres, including orchestral recitals, rock concerts and music festivals. The service launch is imminent and for some events patients will have the option of interacting with the event via an app.
Dean Moody, healthcare services director at Airwave Healthcare, said: “The Clatterbridge Cancer Centre has made a proactive decision to innovate with patient entertainment technology in ways that add value to the patient experience, that help to stimulate minds as people receive care, and that can make a tangible difference to staff. We are really pleased to see this already working well, and we look forward to collaborating with a very forward-looking team at the trust, to enable even more benefits to be realised to help to enable efficiencies in the care environment.”
The UK dental sector is facing an unprecedented staffing challenge. NHS dentistry, already under pressure from underfunding and recruitment shortages, is now contending with volatile workforce availability and surging patient demand. The British Dental Association (BDA) has warned of an “existential crisis” for NHS provision, while a 2023 General Dental Council (GDC) survey revealed that more than a quarter of UK dentists are considering reducing their NHS commitments or leaving the profession altogether.
Dr Eugene Bojé
For patients, this translates into longer waits, fewer available appointments, and – in some cases – no access to a dentist at all. For practice managers, it means a daily struggle to fill empty clinical slots, particularly when staff call in sick or patient lists suddenly swell. The reality is that in many surgeries, the problem is not only about recruiting dentists – it is about keeping the chairs occupied day-to-day.
Locum dentists – clinicians brought in on a temporary basis – play a vital role in keeping services running. Yet sourcing reliable, last-minute cover through traditional recruitment agencies can be slow, opaque, and costly. Many recruitment agencies still rely on outdated methods, including manual phone calls, limited out-of-hours options, and a “we’ll see what we can do” approach that leaves dental practices waiting for solutions to their urgent recruitment needs. Without real-time visibility of who is available, practices risk cancelling patients, disrupting continuity of care, and losing income.
Dubbed the “Uber of dental locuming,” Airlocum connects practices directly with verified locum dentists and hygienists in their area. The platform allows managers to log in, browse clinician profiles, check availability and rates, and confirm bookings – often within 15 minutes.
With over 1,300 practices already onboard (a figure that continues to grow month-on-month), Airlocum has rapidly overtaken many traditional agencies in speed, transparency, and cost-effectiveness.
For Suzie Lovick, Operations Manager at Banning Dental Group, the difference has been transformational: “Airlocum has genuinely changed the game for us. It’s not just a platform – it’s a solution shaped around the realities of running a fast-paced dental group. We can see exactly where the usage has been, who has covered the shifts, and the associated spend. We only use Airlocum now.”
The comparison with Uber or Airbnb is more than a marketing tagline. Just as those services replaced phone queues with instant, on-demand access, Airlocum provides real-time control over staffing, clear digital records, and secure communication. This shift not only saves time, but it also reduces the operational risk of cancelled patient sessions.
For locum dentists, the benefits are equally significant. The British Dental Journal notes that flexibility and digital convenience are now among the top career priorities for early-career dental clinicians. Airlocum’s model offers autonomy over work choices, direct negotiation on
rates, and clarity on job details – features that are often absent in the traditional agency process.
In the first half of 2025 alone, Airlocum processed more than 9,500 bookings, with nearly one-third of those being same-day cover requests. The platform is increasingly integrating with other digital systems used by practice groups, from diary management tools to compliance documentation and payroll reporting.
This is where the model’s relevance to the public sector becomes clear. As dentistry moves towards larger, consolidated practice groups – some operating NHS contracts at scale – centralised, tech-enabled management systems are becoming essential. Platforms like Airlocum fit neatly into this infrastructure, offering data insights into staffing trends, cost control, and operational efficiency.
For commissioners and policymakers, the use of innovative recruitment technology in the dental sector demonstrates how real-time staffing models could help reduce missed appointments and patient backlogs across other healthcare settings, while also providing a framework for integrating digital platforms into NHS contractual arrangements to ensure that both urban and rural practices benefit equally.
While dentistry has traditionally lagged behind other healthcare sectors in adopting technology, change is accelerating. From AI-assisted diagnostics to remote treatment planning, digital tools are beginning to reshape both patient care and operational resilience.
Locum-matching platforms are an essential part of this shift. They do not replace clinicians, but they ensure that those clinicians are in the right place, at the right time – when dental practices need them. For patients, that means fewer cancelled appointments and more consistent access to treatment. As NHS dental services are already overstretched, the ability to secure recruitment cover within minutes could mean the difference between keeping a surgery open or closing its doors for the day.
For the public sector, the lesson is clear: when workforce shortages meet patient need, technology can bridge the gap quickly, transparently, and cost-effectively. Where every available appointment slot matters, this innovation may be the key to keeping NHS dentistry accessible for the communities that need it most.
Cancer patients will benefit from the potential for faster diagnosis and better access to specialist opinions, following the go-live of a digital pathology solution across five NHS sites in Devon and Cornwall.
Technical and clinical deployment of the pathology module of Sectra’s enterprise imaging solution has now taken place at University Hospitals Plymouth NHS Trust and Royal Devon University Healthcare NHS Foundation Trust – Exeter, with more laboratories soon to follow in Royal Cornwall Hospitals NHS Trust, Royal Devon University Healthcare NHS Foundation Trust – North Devon, and Torbay and South Devon NHS Foundation Trust.
A period of clinical validation will take place over several months, before digital reporting becomes mainstream, with a move towards replacing glass slides and microscopes with high resolution digital images, and the modern tools to transform how in-demand pathologists work across the region.
The solution will progressively replace the need for pathologists to interact with glass slides, which have historically been packaged and transported when second opinions are needed. The new approach will allow pathologists to save precious time preparing for, and showing areas of concern, during multi-disciplinary team meetings.
It will also mean that pathologists can work more flexibly, being able to report or provide specialist opinions on pathology images from anywhere in the region without delay and being able to work from home.
Steve Blunden, Peninsula Pathology digital pathology lead, said: “We owe it to people who get cancer to enhance how we deliver our services and allow busy pathologists to collaborate to provide timely, efficient and accurate diagnosis. This is what digital pathology is all about.
“For many cancer types, there is often a golden window from tissue diagnosis to starting surgery or chemotherapy to ensure efficacy of the treatment regimens. Digitising pathology will enhance our ability to deliver treatment to patients in a timely manner, helping to reduce recovery periods and improve outcomes for patients.
“Any patient in Devon and Cornwall should expect their biopsy to be reported by the most appropriate pathologist wherever they sit in the region, and to have their report delivered back into their host organisation system so they can be told if they have cancer and start any necessary treatment in a timely way.”
The new solution will not only benefit cancer patients, but everyone who has a specimen taken and waits for the result. Using digital pathology also creates the potential for diagnosis to be delivered sooner.
Known as the Peninsula Pathology Network, the region is the latest in the UK to deploy the Sectra imaging solution, which has been widely used in NHS hospitals for many years to analyse and report on diagnostic imaging.
Dr Tim Bracey, a consultant pathologist at Royal Cornwall Hospitals NHS Trust, and clinical digital lead for the Peninsula Pathology Network, said: “My colleagues are very eager to use digital pathology in their diagnostic work. Mature technology will help to change how we collaborate across the region and facilitate home working which will help to recruit and retain scarce professionals in the area.
“Using digital pathology is not only convenient – it is essential for expert review. Viewing very high-quality images, very rapidly, from any part of the region, will help specialists and generalists to maintain and raise each other’s standards. I expect that the quality of service will increase throughout the region, where reporting and review will be much more seamless.
“The potential for AI to reduce time-consuming, laborious work, will also give pathologists more time to do the interactive part of the specialty, to provide prognostic and predictive information to patients ourselves, as the experts, helping to convey the complexity of information. It also opens new possibilities around accurate grading of cancers, to predict morphological subtypes and appropriate drug therapies, and to triage material to be tested in a particular way, rather than testing a tumour for every mutation.”
Jane Rendall, UK and Ireland managing director for Sectra, said: “Devon and Cornwall is a strong example of how a region can continue to break down geographical barriers through digital pathology for the benefit of patients. Hospitals and laboratories across the network will become even closer through the ability to share images seamlessly. This offers the potential to redesign workforce structures and to enhance access for patients.”
The government’s plan for the NHS is a huge document. Jane Stephenson, chief executive of SPARK TSL, argues the key to unlocking its digital ambitions is to consider what it has to say about the shift from CDs to digital music.
Jane Stephenson
How can trusts and health boards make the same shift from analogue to digital delivery, while lowering costs and improving satisfaction and engagement?
The government has published the 10 Year Health Plan that it says will deliver “radical change” in the NHS and create a more local, more personalised experience for patients.
Fit for the Future is a big document. Online, it runs to more than 160 pages. So, it’s important to find a way in. One of the things that struck me was a panel a third of the way through, which talks about using digital to improve financial sustainability.
This panel says: “In other industries, digital technology has fundamentally disrupted the status quo. Listening to music no longer requires the manufacture of a physical CD, its distribution to shops, or the costs of physical retail space. Higher convenience, at a far low unit cost.”
Built to support digital delivery
Why did this stand out? Well, SPARK TSL was created to bring about exactly this disruption. We set out to deliver wi-fi to areas where it was hard to deploy and to help businesses to use that connectivity to deliver digital services to their users.
We work in marinas, shopping centres, and conference centres; but we have developed a specialist health practice since we started working with a London trust 20 years’ ago.
Almost every hospital trust and health board in England and Scotland now uses SPARK Connect wi-fi, our patient engagement solution, or the bedside units that we acquired with Hospedia towards the end of the Covid-19 pandemic.
We are also starting to see trusts adopt the SPARK Fusion platform that we are promoting into the NHS since acquiring and enhancing it from the Sentean Group in the Netherlands, where it is used by leading hospitals to put productivity and patient apps into the hands of staff and patients.
Analogue to digital, or old tech to new?
This is another reason that panel stood out. It was the digitisation of music, so that it could be burned onto a CD, that paved the way for the streaming services that we use today. But the delivery mechanism moved on.
Back in the day, the Hospedia units were just as revolutionary. They did away with payphones in hospital corridors and TVs that had to be wheeled onto wards, so every patient could watch the same programme.
Today, they have had their time. Since we acquired Hospedia, we have been encouraging trusts and their charities to consider the role of the ‘patient pays’ model and to work with us to provide additional functionality and services that will make the lives of staff and patients better. Now, we are planning to ‘end of life’ the old units next year.
However, as we do that, trusts will be able to use the valuable infrastructure that sits behind them – the trunking, power, and wi-fi services – to deliver entertainment, communication, and information to patients, over modern bedside units, iPads, and patients’ own devices.
So, what strikes me is that one of the big shifts that the 10 Year Health Plan wants to see is from analogue to digital. Yet the NHS has been deploying digital for 30 years and, sometimes, what it has done is get stuck on old technology.
As trusts and their IT departments look to respond to Fit for the Future, they will need technology partners that can not just install new technology but maintain, refresh, and build on it.
By 2035, we know we will have refreshed the iPads that we are putting into trusts now at least twice; and we can predict that we will be running whole new packages of software as staff and patient requirements mature.
Change tech, change relationships
Going back to that panel: the move from CDs to streaming didn’t just change the distribution mechanism for music. It changed people’s relationship with it.
Today, people can compile playlists of the songs that matter to them, and get suggestions tailored to their needs – from working out to relaxing. In the Netherlands, hospitals also use SPARK Fusion to give patients more control over their environment.
They use the platform to run modern nurse call systems that allow patients to indicate what they need before busy staff head for their bedside, ensuring the correct staff member is assigned to the task. They support meal ordering apps that reduce waste by enabling patients to order food that fits with their tastes and condition, thanks to integration with administrative and clinical systems.
They also use SPARK Fusion to provide patients with information about their treatment, discharge and rehabilitation. In fact, patients can download the Fusion app onto their devices and take digital leaflets, medicines advice, physiotherapy exercises and other information home with them.
This helps to reduce the risk of re-admission and helps patients to get the best possible outcome. Which, of course, fits with the other two shifts that the 10 Year Health Plan wants to see, which are from hospital to community and treatment to prevention.
It also fits with the plan’s argument about why those shifts matter, which is that they will improve productivity and deliver more personalised care.
The plan argues that it is “boosting operational productivity” that will enable the NHS to “restore constitutional waiting time standards and deliver increasingly innovative care.” While it is “more precise prevention, and the information and tools that patients need to more actively participate in their own care,” that will reduce demand in the long term.
What I take from this is that trusts don’t just need to go from analogue to digital, or even old technology to new technology. They need to find the technology that will support productivity, excite staff, and engage patients.
At one of the first English hospitals to deploy SPARK Fusion, a survey has shown that 80% of patients are finding it easier to find educational content. The platform is putting information in patients’ hands so they can act on it.
Feedback loops
Speaking of surveys. The 10 Year Health Plan outlines a new role for patient feedback. It says this could be used alongside league tables to support patient choice and that it could influence the rates hospitals are paid for treatment.
Our technology facilitates the collection of patient feedback. It can be used to run statutory surveys and drive-up completion rates. However, that is just a small part of the picture.
The big piece is to seize the opportunities presented by digital to modernise delivery and improve productivity and experience in the process. To do that, trusts and health boards need the right digital partner, with the right technology, and the vision to evolve that technology over time.
That’s what will bring the “higher convenience, lower unit cost” services to the NHS that we have come to expect from entertainment and other digital experiences in our day to day lives.
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