NHS to become ‘digital by default’ under landmark 10-year plan to transform care delivery

Key Takeaways:

• The UK government’s new 10-year health plan aims to make the NHS ‘digital by default’, moving most outpatient care out of hospitals by 2035.
• Local neighbourhood health centres will house integrated services, from diagnostics to social support, fundamentally changing where and how people receive care.
• The ambitious strategy requires significant investment in technology, estates, and local leadership to succeed, with experts warning sustained support is essential.
  
  

Prime Minister Keir Starmer has unveiled the government’s new 10-year health plan, setting a bold ambition for the NHS to become ‘digital by default’. The strategy, launched on 3 July 2025, outlines how the majority of outpatient care will be delivered outside of traditional hospital settings by 2035, reshaping the health system to focus on community-based, technology-enabled care.

Ending ‘hospital by default’: a preventative, digital-first NHS

A press release issued by the Department of Health and Social Care (DHSC) on the same day stated that the longstanding status quo of ‘hospital by default’ would come to an end. Instead, the plan establishes a new preventative principle: care should be ‘digital by default’.

The DHSC noted:

“The government’s plan will bring it into the digital age, making sure staff benefit from the advantages and efficiencies available from new technology.”

This includes a pledge to roll out new digital tools for general practitioners over the next two years. These tools will support quicker referrals and introduce AI scribes, which are expected to “end the need for clinical note taking, letter drafting, and manual data entry to free up clinicians’ time.”

Additionally, digital telephony systems will be introduced so that calls to GP practices can be answered promptly, enabling same-day digital or telephone consultations when required.

Care on the doorstep: introducing the Neighbourhood Health Service

As part of this transformation, Starmer announced the creation of a Neighbourhood Health Service, designed to ensure that people receive care closer to their homes. Outlining his vision, he said:

“Our 10 year health plan will fundamentally rewire and future-proof our NHS so that it puts care on people’s doorsteps, harnesses game-changing tech and prevents illness in the first place.

That means giving everyone access to GPs, nurses, and wider support all under one roof in their neighbourhood – rebalancing our health system so that it fits around patients’ lives, not the other way round.”

Neighbourhood teams will be based in new health centres, intended to operate 12 hours a day, six days a week once fully established. These centres aim to bring traditionally hospital-based services – such as diagnostics, post-operative care and rehabilitation – into the community. They will also incorporate broader services, including debt advice, employment support, and stop smoking or weight management programmes.

A shift that could ‘turn the NHS on its head’

Health secretary Wes Streeting described the scale of the proposed changes as one of the most significant in NHS history:

“Our 10 year health plan will turn the NHS on its head, delivering one of the most fundamental changes in the way we receive our healthcare in history.

By shifting from hospital to community, we will finally bring down devastating hospital waiting lists and stop patients going from pillar to post to get treated.”

Healthcare leaders have largely welcomed the vision. Daniel Elkeles, chief executive of NHS Providers, called the plan potentially a “gamechanger” for the NHS, adding that it is:

“a win for patients who will be better informed and empowered to direct their care as never before.”

Matthew Taylor, chief executive of the NHS Confederation, also praised the announcement, describing it as:

“a vital step towards a more preventative, community-based NHS.”

However, he cautioned that realising this ambition would hinge on continued investment and local empowerment:

“Delivering on this ambition will require sustained investment in digital and estates, support for the NHS’s workforce, and a commitment to decentralise national control by empowering local leaders to do what is best for their populations.”

Underpinned by major investment in NHS technology

The plan builds on an earlier pledge of an additional £10 billion investment in NHS IT. Other recent measures include the introduction of ‘innovator passports’ to accelerate the rollout of new technologies, updates to the NHS App, and the implementation of an AI system designed to detect unsafe care.

Taken together, these initiatives represent a decisive shift towards a digitally enabled, locally delivered model of care – one intended to reshape the NHS for the next generation.