An apprenticeship programme is being launched to equip NHS staff with the critical skills needed to use the federated data platform (FDP) effectively.

The NHS FDP connects vital data which is currently stored in separate systems, enabling staff to access the information they need in one environment.

NHS England’s medium term planning framework, published in October 2025, states that all trusts and integrated care boards (ICBs) must be onboarded to the NHS FDP and use its core products to support elective recovery, cancer, and urgent and emergency care from April 2026.

FDP supplier Palantir and upskilling platform Multiverse are partnering to create a suite of apprenticeship programmes featuring training on the FDP, with the first cohorts planned to launch in February 2026.

Euan Blair, founder and chief executive of Multiverse, said: “To truly unlock the power of the NHS Federated Data Platform, the NHS needs a workforce that is confident and skilled in using data and AI.

“This partnership isn’t just about implementing new technology; it’s about investing in the people who will use it every day to make a tangible difference to patient care.

“We’re proud to be a part of this crucial step in the NHS’s digital evolution, deepening our existing relationship with the NHS.”

The curriculum will be tailored to the needs of a diverse range of NHS roles, including analysts, administrators, managers and clinical staff, with the aim of helping NHS organisations implement the FDP directly into their work.

Louis Mosley, executive vice president, UK and Europe, at Palantir, said: “The NHS FDP is already improving care for patients while cutting paperwork for doctors and nurses.

“It has delivered 80,000 additional operations and reduced discharge delays by 15 per cent, while the government is forecasting that it is on track to deliver £150 million of benefits each year by the end of the decade.

“Now we need to double down on training to keep driving up the number of NHS staff who are trained on the technology – and this partnership will be central to that.”

The FDP offers products such as a referral to treatment validation tool, outpatient care co-ordination and discharge planning.

However, NHS trusts with their own products have consistently pushed back on adopting the FDP and despite 150 trusts having onboarded, only 77 were live and actively reporting benefits in September 2025, according to NHSE figures.

Marc Farr, chair of the Chief Data and Analytics Officer’s Network, told Digital Health News that NHSE’s mandate in its planning guidance that trusts use the FDP is “at odds with the existing policy that says you have to consider the FDP but if you already have data and tools in place then you can proceed and not use it”.

He previously wrote an open letter to Ming Tang, chief data and analytics officer at NHSE, raising concerns about whether the FDP is capable of supporting local systems.