NHS Shared Business Services (NHS SBS) has launched a £250 million procurement framework agreement to help the NHS improve the way it communicates with its patients and service users through technology.

The Patient/Citizen Communication, Engagement and Hybrid Mail Solutions framework agreement is active from 16 February 2026 until 15 February 2030 and includes fully vetted suppliers who can provide everything from chatbots to SMS messaging to mail processing.

Organisations can use the framework agreement to procure technology and support for essential communications such as appointment notifications and reminders.

Other services that can be procured via the framework include workforce communication such as one and two-way mobile audio messaging and digital pagers, call handling via call centres and the provision of patient portals and smartphone apps.

Kelly Harris, senior category manager at NHS SBS, said: “Effective communication is vital in any organisation – but even more so in the NHS, when lives can depend on it.

“Unfortunately, NHS organisations aren’t always quick to adopt new communication technologies – some trusts are still using fax machines and analogue pagers.

“Using a framework agreement like ours enables all public sector organisations to swiftly and compliantly procure reliable and cost-effective ways of communicating with their patients, staff and service users.”

The framework agreement consists of seven lots:

• Lot 1: Digital communication, including the provision of automated one- and two-way internet-based communication services such as portals, smartphone apps and email.
• Lot 2: Messaging, including the provision of automated one- and two-way digital messaging, SMS, digital paging and alerting.
• Lot 3: Voice Communication, including the provision of an agent calls service based in a call centre and Interactive Voice Response (IVR), including intelligent call routing and patient self-service.
• Lot 4: Hybrid mail, including the provision of on- or off-site bulk mail, both traditional and electronic.
• Lot 5: Patient/Citizen experience, including the provision of surveys and feedback analysis and data collection.
• Lot 6: Workforce Communication, including the provision of one- and two-way audio messaging, digital paging and alerting services
• Lot 7: Combined solutions, encompassing elements from various Lots with a single supplier and a sole contract.

It is intended to support organisations in lowering Did Not Attend (DNA) rates by enabling accurate and reliable appointment scheduling. Suppliers on the framework agreement include Aire Logic, Civica, IQVIA, X-on Health, Synertec, and RIVIAM Digital Care.

In October 2025, NHS SBS launched a £150m framework agreement for digital dictation, speech recognition and outsourced transcription services.

Government guidance, published in April 2025, encourages NHS clinicians to use ambient voice technology and generative AI to transcribe patient consultations and turn them into structured medical notes and letters.