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Postage of Letters and Use of Patient Portal

Reference: 25-26318

Date response sent: 21/10/2025

Details of enquiry

  1. How many letters in total were sent by the Trust between 1st October 2024 – 30th September 2025?

Of those, how many and what percentage were:

a. Posted locally (i.e. franked and sent out by the post room):

b. Sent via hybrid mail (i.e. posted by your hybrid mail supplier):

c. Sent digitally (i.e. published and read by the recipient via the NHS app):

2. Of those letters posted locally or sent via hybrid mail between 1st October 2024 – 30th September 2025, how many were sent 1st class?

a. Of those letters posted locally or sent via hybrid mail between 1st October 2024 – 30th September 2025, how many were sent via 2nd class?

3. If you use a hybrid mail service:

a. As of September 2025, who is your hybrid mail provider?

b. Which frameworks do you use to tender for hybrid mail?

c. What date was the agreement signed?

d. When does the contract expire?

4. If you use a patient portal for some or all of your patient communications:

a. As of September 2025, who is your patient portal or NHS app supplier:

b. What month and year did your patient portal or NHS app go live for online communications:

Month  /  Year

c. As of September 2025, what is the total number of patients registered to receive online communications via your patient portal or NHS app:

d. What percentage of letters submitted to your hybrid mail provider were first passed into the NHS app (i.e. the letter was not read in the app by the intended recipient): %

e. Does your hybrid mail supplier charge you for passing letters into your NHS app:

Yes / No

f. What were the total number of letters sent and read by patients via your patient portal or NHS app between 1st October 2024 – 30th September 2025 (i.e. read online):

  1. As of 2025, who manages digital transformation initiatives?

Name:

Phone:

Email Address:

  1. As of 2025, who is your print room manager / manager of mailing operations?

Name:

Phone:

Email Address:

  1. As of 2025, who manages procurement for print and post solutions?

Name:

Phone:

Email Address:

Response sent

  1. How many letters in total were sent by the Trust between 1st October 2024 – 30th September 2025?

17,447 letters were sent by the Trust between 1st October 2024 to 30th September 2025.

Of those, how many and what percentage were:

a. Posted locally (i.e. franked and sent out by the post room):

All of them

b. Sent via hybrid mail (i.e. posted by your hybrid mail supplier):

Not applicable.  We do not have a hybrid mail supplier

c. Sent digitally (i.e. published and read by the recipient via the NHS app):

We do not currently send out letters via the NHS App, but this is an area that is actively being explored.

  1. Of those letters posted locally or sent via hybrid mail between 1st October 2024 – 30th September 2025, how many were sent 1st class?
  • Letters sent out via hybrid mail is not applicable. See our response to 1b) above
  • During the period, the Trust sent out 1,558 letters via 1st class postage

a. Of those letters posted locally or sent via hybrid mail between 1st October 2024 – 30th September 2025, how many were sent via 2nd class?

  • Letters sent out via hybrid mail: not applicable. See our response to 1b) above
  • During the period, the Trust sent out 15,066 letters via 2nd class postage

The remainder of 823 letters were sent as other categories of post; overseas postage, and tracked, registered, express postage

  1. If you use a hybrid mail service:

a. As of September 2025, who is your hybrid mail provider?

b. Which frameworks do you use to tender for hybrid mail?

c. What date was the agreement signed?

d. When does the contract expire?

Your questions 3a to 3d are not applicable.  See our response to 1b above

  1. If you use a patient portal for some or all of your patient communications:

a. As of September 2025, who is your patient portal or NHS app supplier:

Inch Limited, T/A DrDoctor

b. What month and year did your patient portal or NHS app go live for online communications:

March 2024

c. As of September 2025, what is the total number of patients registered to receive online communications via your patient portal or NHS app:

At this stage, 23,500 patients are registered to receive online communications via our patient portal for specific services.

d. What percentage of letters submitted to your hybrid mail provider were first passed into the NHS app (i.e. the letter was not read in the app by the intended recipient): %

Not applicable.  See our response to 1b) above

e. Does your hybrid mail supplier charge you for passing letters into your NHS app:

Not applicable.  See our response to 1b) above

f. What were the total number of letters sent and read by patients via your patient portal or NHS app between 1st October 2024 – 30th September 2025 (i.e. read online):

None at present.  See our response to Question 1c) above.

  1. As of 2025, who manages digital transformation initiatives?

This is not a dedicated role

  1. As of 2025, who is your print room manager / manager of mailing operations?

Not applicable.  The Trust does not have a print room

  1. As of 2025, who manages procurement for print and post solutions?

Name: The Procurement Manager

Phone: 020 7435 7111

Email Address: Procurement@tavi-port.nhs.uk

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