NHS England’s Transformation Directorate has announced the allocation of £13.5 million to support the development of a network of secure data environments (SDEs) for the health service.
It said this will ensure that all of England has sub-national SDEs with teams for 11 regions.
The plan has been outlined in a blogpost by Dr Claire Bloomfield, deputy director, data for research and development in the directorate, who described the secure environments as a space for approved users to access and analyse data.
“Sub national SDEs for research will offer near real time, privacy protecting, access to rich linked data spanning different types including imaging, pathology and genomics,” Bloomfield said. “They will operate at significant scale, covering around five million citizens each, whilst preserving connectivity to local communities and clinical teams.
“The Sub National SDEs will be designed to operate smoothly with the NHS Digital (national) secure data environment, unified by a community of practice that will inform SDE policy and build on prior investments including – where lawful – the use of information from shared care record solutions.”
Privacy, transparency, innovation
She added that the development of the network will be shaped by conversations with patients and the public, taking into account expectations for privacy and transparency, and that: “Secure data environments will deliver more rapid and efficient healthtech innovation for England.”
This follows the announcement last March of up to £200 million in joint funding from NHS England, the Department for Health and Social Care and the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy to make health data more accessible and linkable.
Bloomfield said it has enabled the directorate to begin investing in SDEs and data driven clinical trials.
It has also published 12 policy guidelines for SDEs and NHS Digital has upgraded its own secure data environment.
