The report is published as part of our wider programme examining 'Technology and the NHS estate', which explores how advances in digital health and technology will impact on the estate the health sector needs in the future.

Clicks and Mortar: technology and estate need closer alignment to deliver NHS Long Term Plan

In partnership with The King's Fund, NHS Property Services has supported Clicks and Mortar: technology and the NHS estate report. The report identifies a number of challenges to getting the most value out of technology and the estate. These include the availability of the right skills within the NHS, as well as accessing the amount of investment needed to deliver this alignment, given pressure on capital budgets.

Read the summary 

Read the full report

Watch our free online event

Listen to The King's Fund podcast of the report 

NHS Open Space

A clear example of where technology and the estate could be better aligned is in the use of underutilised areas of buildings. Space in NHS building is inconsistently administered across the NHS estate using different processes for booking, pricing, access conditions and service levels, which makes it difficult to book and plan space requirements.

NHS Property Services is solving this through NHS Open Space, a new online booking system that allows users to view different information about rooms, check availability then book, pay and manage the booking. Room types vary from clinical space to meeting rooms and offices. During the pilot period the system:

• registered over 1,000 unique users from 350 NHS bodies and companies
• received over 65,000 bookings 
• enabled over 350,000 hours of vital service

Find out more about NHS Open Space.