Welcome to the May edition of The Digital Academy Newsletter. Here is your monthly round up of all things happening in The Digital Academy and system partners, including learning opportunities, news, updates, events and learning spotlights. Check out two great showcasing sessions for our Digital Health Leadership Programme and Digital Boards Programme.
Please do email us with your thoughts and feedback and forward to colleagues who may wish to sign up.
Learning opportunities
NHS Digital Academy Campus: New self-guided agile and product learning
As shared in our last newsletter, the NHS Digital Academy has launched a new set of free, self-guided courses to help colleagues across health and care build confidence in agile ways of working, continuous improvement, and effective digital team practices, whether you’re new to agile and product delivery, refreshing the basics or looking for practical tools to strengthen how your team works. Tony Blacker from the Digital Academy takes the opportunity to provide a whistlestop tour to highlight what’s available. Discover more.
AI Ambassador Network bite size learning
James Freed, our Deputy Director launched the first of the bite size learning at the AI Ambassador Network session on 6 May on Governance in AI and was joined by Dr Jeffry Hogg, Clinician Scientist at University Hospitals Birmingham NHS Foundation Trust. You can catch up on demand as the AI Ambassador network sessions are recorded and uploaded to the AI Virtual Hub FutureNHS workspace. You will need to apply to join in order to access the full recordings. The bite size AI learning edits can be accessed via the bite size session links on the NHS Digital Academy Futures community. There will be ongoing, monthly bite size sessions, so well worth joining.
Microsoft 365 Copilot (Basic and Premium) learning opportunities
In our ongoing efforts to increase AI literacy and competence for all NHS staff, Microsoft continue to provide free online sessions where you will learn: what Copilot is and how it’s different from other AI chat tools, how to use Copilot, and example Copilot prompts for your day-to-day work in Healthcare. Visit Microsoft's page to register for the webinar for your version. Visit https://m365copilot.com and check in the bottom left to see if you have the "Basic" or "Premium" version.
New webinars available on the FEDIP Hub
Health Literacy and Health Information: Roles and tools for information specialists presented by Dr Ruth Carlyle, Head of Knowledge and Library Services at NHS England. This webinar was hosted jointly between FEDIP And CILIP.
The Role of the Clinical Terminologist presented by three guest speakers: Michael Harwood-Jones, Map Specialist, SNOMED International; Sam Levy, Lead Clinical Terminologist at Manchester University NHS Foundation Trust and Hannah Anderson, Senior Clinical Terminologist and Clinical Content Designer. This webinar was hosted by Lauren Saxton, Director of Communications at IHRIM. The webinars can be accessed by logging into FEDIP Hub | FEDIP
Latest news
Skills Development Networks name change
From 1 May 2026, our partner, the Digital Skills Development Networks are now known as the Skills Development Network for Digital, Data and Technology (DDaT). The new name better reflects the inclusive cross-disciplinary community they support across the NHS with the same mission to support skills development across the NHS and wider health system. Find out more about the network.
Hospital patients can now check appointments in the NHS App
Hospital patients at every NHS trust across England can now check their referrals and appointments through the NHS App, making it easier for millions of people to manage their care in one place. The NHS App is now linked to every acute NHS trust in England, with the tech helping hospitals to save money by reducing the need for letters and SMS text messages with 41 million people registered with the NHS App. Read more.
NHS Online: A new online service for specialist care
From 2027, NHS Online will give people in England the option to receive planned care through the NHS App. It will connect people with specialist clinicians across the country, helping them get care sooner without always needing to travel. It is expected to deliver up to 8.5 million appointments and assessments in its first 3 years, although digital care will never be the only option for patients. A new NHS Online website will launch this summer. Learn more.
Upcoming events
Digital Health Leadership Programme showcase
Join our session on Tuesday 9th June, 10:30 to 11:30, where we will be joined by Lord Darzi, the Academic Director, and his team from the Institute of Global Health Innovation at Imperial College London (IGHI) to showcase our Digital Health Leadership Programme (DHLP).
DHLP is a flagship NHS Digital Academy Programme that supports the need to develop and invest in our digital change leaders, so directly addressing ambitions in the 10-Year Health Plan. It is a 12-month, part-time, fully accredited Postgraduate Diploma in Digital Health Leadership and around 820 change leaders have graduated or are currently enrolled. About to enter its 9th year of delivery in partnership with IGHI, this session will cover how the programme works, how it has iterated and maintained longevity and value, and how it measures onward impact on digital transformation across the NHS.
This session is very much an information sharing one and open to anyone who is interested, whether in a digital change lead role or not. Register for the session.
Digital Boards: Aligning digital strategy with organisational strategy
Join our partner, NHS Alliance’s peer learning online event on 15 June 2026, 15:00 to 16:30, focussing on how to align digital strategy with organisational strategy, showcasing the work that has been done at University Hospitals of North Midlands NHS Trust. This event is designed to provide board and senior leaders with the tools they need to effectively build and integrate digital strategy into organisational goals. Register for the event.
Professional registration / membership information series
Building on the recent exciting announcement from FEDIP and NHS England to professionalise the Digital, Data and Technology workforce, the Skills Development Network for Digital, Data and Technology (DDaT) has joined forces with the professional bodies to deliver a programme of short ‘Lunch and Learn’ sessions in May and June. They aim to explain the benefits and importance of professional membership and registration. Register for the sessions.
Recently published
From policy to practice: health innovation and economic growth in devolved systems
The Health Innovation Network has published a new report, From policy to practice: health innovation and economic growth in devolved systems, setting out how regions can align health, economic strategy and innovation to improve population outcomes. Informed by a roundtable event at HETT Leaders in Leeds, involved one of the Digital Academy ex-leads, Henrietta MBeah-Bankas, the report captures how this shift is already being implemented in practice and sets out what is required to translate national policy into coordinated local delivery.
Inside Gov.UK – 5 things we learned testing Gov.UK: an AI assistant for government
Over the last 18 months the Government Digital Service (GDS) have run 2 public pilots of GOV.UK Chat, an AI assistant for GOV.UK, built by GDS. These pilots represent one of the largest user research exercises GDS has ever conducted, and the government’s biggest public test of generative AI to date. Read about the 5 headline findings.
AI adoption is about leadership, not just tech
Read this new blog from our partner, NHS Alliance in which Dr Anne Kinderlerer, digital health clinical lead, Royal College of Physicians, reflects on the findings from the College’s ‘View on digital and AI report’ and asks whether the NHS has the foundations required to implement AI effectively and safely.
Learning spotlights
Reflections on Topol cohort 5 closing ceremony
We recently held the closing event of the NHS Digital Academy Topol Fellowship cohort 5. Tash Willcocks,TPXimpact co facilitated the day with our delivery partners at Health Innovation Wessex. Tash takes the opportunity to reflect and exclaims ‘What a way to finish such a valuable experience! The final day was one of those rare and valuable moments: in-person, reflective, and sharing our experiences.’ Read her reflections.
Allowing the Topol Fellowship project to become what it needs to be
When Sherryl Chatfield, Clinical Specialist Neuromuscular Physiotherapist, talks about her Topol Fellowship project, she’s quick to say that it’s still in progress. She has been on several learning curves at once and if she could offer one piece of advice to herself at the start of the Fellowship, Sherryl doesn’t hesitate: be patient. Read her inspiring story.
Digital profession
Digital profession Agenda for Change job descriptions
A suite of 70 nationally developed, Agenda for Change banded Job Descriptions for the Digital Profession is now available on the Digital Profession Futures site to support recruitment and workforce planning across the NHS. These optional national resources cover roles across Architecture, Cyber, Data & Analytics, IT Operations, and Software Development & Quality Assurance Testing, and can be adapted for local use, with local job matching processes applying.
Job Descriptions for the remaining Digital Profession roles are currently under development for the wider NHS and will be published by December 2026. Subject matter experts from across the NHS are invited to support this work. To get involved, please contact us.
Digital professional body membership: FAQs
Further to the announcement on Professional Membership for the NHS Digital, Data and Technology Workforce, we have published draft frequently asked questions on our NHS Futures page. If you have further questions either add to the chat on the Futures site or email the team. FEDIP and a number of the professional bodies are offering briefing sessions in May and June, details on their events page.
Other useful resources
We have a range of bulletins covering primary care, nursing, mental health, transformation, NHS IMPACT and other topics.
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