The following table shows the information requested:

Source: Department of Health and Social Care

The following table shows the proportion of spending on Microsoft software licenses and services between 4 December 2024 and 5 December 2025, and between 4 December 2023 and 5 December 2024 that was allocated to new service implementations and renewal, and to the maintenance of existing systems:

For the period 4 December 2024 to 5 December 2025, the Department spent £4.8 million on Microsoft Software licenses and services. During this period this spend accounted for 25.2% of the overall internal technology spend.

No formal assessment has been made of fertility apps and no steps are being taken to regulate them. Fertility apps are privately owned health apps, and as such they do not share data directly with the Department.

Where fertility apps meet the definition of a medical device, the safety of these products already falls under the remit of the United Kingdom’s medical device regulations and the Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA). Examples of products that would fall within the remit of these regulations would be apps intended to facilitate conception and enable contraception based on basal body temperature.

Patients looking for fertility advice should speak to their general practitioner or a licensed fertility clinic. They can also find unbiased information on fertility treatments and UK licenced clinics on the Human Fertilisation and Embryology Authority’s website, at the following link:

www.hfea.gov.uk

No formal assessment has been made of fertility apps and no steps are being taken to regulate them. Fertility apps are privately owned health apps, and as such they do not share data directly with the Department.

Where fertility apps meet the definition of a medical device, the safety of these products already falls under the remit of the United Kingdom’s medical device regulations and the Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA). Examples of products that would fall within the remit of these regulations would be apps intended to facilitate conception and enable contraception based on basal body temperature.

Patients looking for fertility advice should speak to their general practitioner or a licensed fertility clinic. They can also find unbiased information on fertility treatments and UK licenced clinics on the Human Fertilisation and Embryology Authority’s website, at the following link:

www.hfea.gov.uk

We are working to improve access to digital services, outcomes, and experiences for the widest range of people, based on their preferences. Digital health tools should be part of a wider offering that includes face-to-face support, with appropriate help for people who struggle to access digital services.

Centrally built services, such as the NHS App and the NHS.UK website, are designed to meet international accessibility standards. We are modernising the mobile patient experience within the NHS App, ensuring information is clearly structured and easy to find and understand.

NHS England has successfully run several programmes to support patients, carers, and health service staff with their digital skills. These include:

- the Digital Health Champions programme, a proof of concept to support citizens who have no or low digital skills with understanding how to access health services online;

- the Widening Digital Participation programme, aimed to ensure more people have the digital skills, motivation, and means to access health information and services online; and

- the NHS App ‘Spoken Word’ Pilot project, designed to test the efficacy of promoting National Health Service digital health products and services in languages other than English.

We have also recruited over 2,000 NHS App ambassadors and 1,400 libraries to help people to learn how to use it.

NHS England has published a framework for NHS action on digital inclusion and is developing further resources to support practical actions. All programmes are actively considering how they can contribute to improvements in healthcare inequalities and digital inclusion.

General practice (GP) surgeries can give someone secure access to another patient's GP services via the NHS App, so that they can help them manage their health and care. This is done through a proxy linked account.

Patients’ health records contain a type of data called confidential patient information. This data can be used to help with research and planning. However, patients can view or change their national data opt-out choice at any time.

The information requested is not available.

The NHS Federated Data Platform (FDP) began its national roll-out in April 2024, following a pilot phase that commenced in 2022. NHS England has invited all National Health Service trusts and integrated care boards (ICBs) to develop plans for how they will maximise the benefits of the FDP for their patients within the next two years

Uptake of the NHS FDP continues to grow. As of 31 March 2025, 108 NHS hospital trusts had signed up to the FDP, and 72 trusts are currently live and in delivery

To monitor participation and progress, NHS England publishes quarterly updates on uptake and the benefits being realised. This includes NHS trusts and ICBs that have signed up, metrics on operational improvements, such as reductions in inpatient and outpatient waitlists, and insights into product adoption and benefit realisation across use cases like elective recovery, care coordination, and crisis response. These updates are available at the following link:

https://www.england.nhs.uk/digitaltechnology/nhs-federated-data-platform/impact/fdp-uptake-and-benefits/

NHS England has procured and paid for licences to provide a Federated Data Platform instance for all trusts and integrated care boards for the full duration of the contract. This includes providing onboarding and implementation support and ongoing access to a National Centre of Excellence and user forums.

The National Health Service retains the intellectual property of solutions it funds or develops, including all associated data models, products, and analytical solutions of the NHS Federated Data Platform, and the background intellectual property remains the property of the respective party.

The contract for the FDP and Associated Services includes specific provisions to mitigate vendor lock-in and support transition to an alternative provider at the end of the contractual period. The contract is available at the following link:

https://www.contractsfinder.service.gov.uk/Notice/0f8a65b5-23a2-4294-abb1-a7fd8efb3ad0

The contract for the Federated Data Platform and Associated Services (FDP-AS) includes provisions to ensure transparency, interoperability, and a smooth transition at the end of the contract period. These provisions are designed to mitigate vendor lock-in and support the National Health Service in maintaining control over its data and digital infrastructure. The FDP-AS agreement includes comprehensive audit and exit mechanisms. These provisions enable NHS England to conduct audits and reviews to support effective transition planning and ensure contractual compliance. The contract is available at the following link:

https://www.contractsfinder.service.gov.uk/Notice/0f8a65b5-23a2-4294-abb1-a7fd8efb3ad0

The NHS Federated Data Platform (FDP) is built with robust security and privacy controls to ensure that access to National Health Service data is tightly governed and independently auditable.

All user activity within the FDP environment is logged for auditing purposes. These logs are actively monitored by both Palantir’s UK security team and the NHS Cyber Security Operations Centre, to detect and respond to any malicious activity. Security logs are encrypted at rest and in transit, and stored on a secure Security Information and Event Management server accessible only to authorised personnel.

Access to data within the FDP is governed by strict controls, including the principle of least privilege and mandatory access control systems. Only authorised users are granted access for approved purposes, and all permissions are subject to audit and review. In addition to these technical safeguards, the FDP Associated Services contract includes audit provisions that allow NHS England to validate and confirm that contractual requirements are being met. These rights of audit are standard within NHS commercial agreements and provide assurance that the platform operates in accordance with NHS England’s expectations and legal obligations.

The contract for the Federated Data Platform and Associated Services (FDP AS) includes provisions to ensure interoperability and support for market development through the use of open standards.

As part of this, the platform is underpinned by the NHS Canonical Data Model (CDM), which provides a consistent and open data schema that all parties connecting to the FDP must use. This ensures that data can be shared and understood across different systems and platforms, supporting interoperability and reducing the risk of vendor lock-in.

To further support transparency and innovation, NHS England has taken steps to publish the CDM on GitHub. This enables developers and suppliers to understand the structure and semantics of the data used within the platform, and to build compatible solutions that can integrate with the FDP.

The publication of the CDM is part of a broader commitment to openness and technical sovereignty, ensuring that the National Health Service retains control over its data infrastructure and can transition to alternative providers if needed.

Sleepio is available for local commissioning by integrated care systems should they choose to commission this product, as part of local insomnia care and treatment pathways.

No central assessments relating to funding or availability of this product are currently planned.

There is currently no central funding from NHS England to support the national commissioning of digital cognitive behavioural therapy for insomnia to integrated care boards.

Sleepio remains available for local commissioning by integrated care systems, should they choose to commission this product, as part of local insomnia care and treatment pathways.

No further assessments relating to the funding or availability of this product at a national level are currently planned.

There are no firm plans to incorporate Quick Response (QR) codes into the vaccination user experience, for example, in invitations, booking confirmations, at the point of care more generally, or in the NHS App specifically.

Work for the QR code feature is still in the research and development phase, however, it is not planned for use in the NHS App roadmap between now and the end of quarter four in March 2025.