In this month’s edition
Review and Submit ‘In Progress’ forms
Carers Trust ‘Caring Across London: Collaborating for Change 2026’ event
Did you know? Managing UCPs for residents moving out of London
UCP Team Spotlight
Shortlisted for HSJ ‘Empowering People through Digital’
Digital Care Plan Survey
Dates for the Diary
Please Review and Submit ‘In Progress’ forms before 14th April – UCP Editable access for Londoners
In late spring, UCP editable access for Londoners via the NHS login service is due to go live. This will enable members of the public to start a care plan and edit selected personal information in real time within the UCP, either via the NHS App or online login.
As part of this change, the option to save information as ‘in progress’ for six forms will be removed on 14th April and any information still saved as ‘in progress’ in these forms on this date will be removed from the system.
This is required to enable the individual to be able to co-author appropriate sections of their care plan enabling greater involvement.
Your Action: please review and submit any ‘in progress’ forms before 14th April to avoid any information being removed.
The six forms affected are:
- Personal Information
- Personal and Professional Contacts
- Communication and Accessibility
- What Matters to Them
- Thinking Ahead
- Daily activities and Support Needs
More information can be found here.
Carers Trust ‘Caring Across London: Collaborating for Change 2026’ event
In February, at the Carers Trust ‘Caring Across London: Collaborating for Change 2026’ event, Ros Spinks, Senior Quality and Patient Safety Manager at NHS England (London Region), shared how NHS England and Carers Trust have worked together to embed a digital Carer Contingency Plan within the UCP.
This enables the recording and sharing of information about how care should be organised if a carer is no longer able to provide support, helping to ensure continuity of care and reduce uncertainty for the people they care for.
Did you know? Managing UCPs for residents moving out of London
If a resident moves out of London but continues to receive care from London-based services, they can keep their UCP.
If they no longer wish to keep it, a London-based professional involved in their care can withdraw it via Actions > Care Plan Settings.
We recommend printing a copy for the resident before withdrawal. The UCP can also be reinstated later by a London-based professional involved in their care.
Please note:
- The UCP can only be edited by London-based professionals involved in the resident’s care.
- Outside London, it is only accessible to services with access to the National Record Locator (NRL).
- An out-of-London GP cannot access or update the UCP.
- Residents cannot view their UCP in the NHS App once registered with a GP outside London.
UCP Report
UCP Team Spotlight
This month, Sarah Fischer shares insights into the engagement work she does as part of our team:
“As UCP Transformation Project Manager, I have the privilege of speaking with health and care professionals across London, about what we do at the UCP. Last year I managed to attend over 90 engagement sessions(!) in which I’ve seen growing interest and engagement from colleagues across a range of care settings – health, social care, and the voluntary sector. It’s wonderful to see the shared commitment to delivering more personalised, coordinated care for our residents.
It has been invaluable speaking directly with professionals about how the UCP supports personalised care, I certainly have learnt so much about all the different ways the UCP is being used and how it could be further developed. Some of my personal highlights have included taking part in the South East London Tea Trolley Dashes, LNWUT Falls Week, working with the Health Innovation Network South London to drive awareness of the UCP within Care Homes, and supporting the rollout of the UCP Carer Contingency Plan.
Each of these initiatives (and those beyond) have showcased the dedication, collaboration and passion of colleagues
working to embed personalised care in everyday practice. It’s wonderful to see. Looking ahead, I’m excited to continue supporting boroughs and systems across London, particularly as the UCP becomes increasingly central to Integrated Neighbourhood Working. We also had our Palliative and End of Life Care Learn and Share session this month, providing another opportunity to check in with and learn from each other.
None of this progress would be possible without the joint working by all the professionals we have the privilege to work with across London. Thank you for your continued collaboration and for championing the UCP.”
Shortlisted for HSJ ‘Empowering People through Digital’ Award
We’re thrilled to have been shortlisted for the HSJ ‘Empowering People through Digital’ award for our integration with the NHS App, which gives people access to view their UCPs.
This integration enables people to view their preferences, urgent care information and key details, and our new functionality, which is expected to go live in late spring, will enable them to contribute personal information. This strengthens safety, personalisation and communication, while reducing duplication for clinicians.
Digital Care Plan Survey
NHS England’s digital care plans team are running a short (5–10 min) survey to understand how care plans are currently used across health and social care. You can find the details here.
Please feel free to spread the word by sharing this through your networks.
Dates for the Diary
19th March – People with Lived Experienced Group (PLEG). Our PLEG group help to keep people at the centre as the UCP evolves.
14th April – Review and submit ‘in progress’ forms before this date as ‘in progress’ functionality will be removed for 6 forms and any information still saved as ‘in progress’ in these forms will be removed from the system.
7th May 12-1pm – UCP webinar on Supporting Patient-Editable Access to the Universal Care Plan: Guidance for Professionals. Find out more and register here. You can also submit questions ahead of the webinar using this Microsoft form.