Multi-million pound contract win for Gateshead tech firm

Tech firm, ITPS has won a £10m contract to connect NHS organisations on 670 sites to the new NHS Health and Social Care Network (HSCN).

This is part of the Gateshead firm’s long-term strategy to carve out a bigger share of the public sector market.

HSCN is a new UK-wide network connecting NHS and public sector organisations with health and social care providers - like pharmacies, dentists, opticians and care homes.

Created as part of the government’s bid to improve data sharing security and efficiency, HSCN is aiming to change the way in which health and social care providers can buy secure connectivity services.

The new agreement allows them to buy from multiple suppliers, as well as in collaboration with other health and social care organisations.

ITPS’ managing director, Garry Sheriff, said: “We are delighted with this win, which is an indicator of our track record and technical expertise.

“We have 20 years [of] expertise delivering more for less to private sector clients, but without impacting quality. Our inclusion on the HSCN framework means we can now apply that experience to deliver high capacity communications that benefit the NHS.

“ITPS is the only supplier in the North East, and one of only 17 UK organisations, judged to be capable of delivering services that meet NHS Digital’s strict supplier standards, putting us in a select group of major players.”

He continued: “The deal is also a validation of our decision to invest an extra £1.2m in our own core communications infrastructure, which exceeded NHS Digital requirements.

“A key element in our ability to deliver UK-wide connectivity services is our strong relationship as a Strategic Partner to Virgin Media Business. This underpins our ability to provide clients with reliable, scalable and dedicated connectivity solutions.”

ITPS was awarded the three-year contract by NHS North of England Commissioning Support (NECS) on behalf of NHS organisations across the North East and Derbyshire.

The deal, which has the potential to add between eight and £10m of revenue to ITPS’s books, will see the ITPS team work with hospitals, foundation trusts, clinical commissioning groups and GP practices across the North East and Derbyshire.

The contract is creating up to 10 new jobs and will see ITPS use the facilities at its own £3m high security North East data centre to provide connections for thousands of health sector staff across the two regions.

Stephen Childs, managing director of NECS, added: “This is a complex project involving hundreds of partners, including seven NHS organisations across the North East and Derbyshire.

“The project signals a positive step towards integrated, patient-centred care working across large health systems. It is critical that we invest in innovative IT solutions. To enable joined-up, effective care we must continue to evolve and embrace new technology.

“The team from ITPS demonstrated a fundamental grasp of the project, and had the technical expertise as well as the proven project management and engineering skills required to deliver a project of this size and scope within the required timescale.”