Improving how we share data from the Healthwatch England website

What’s changing?

We are replacing the less secure practice of sharing people’s experiences via email with a new, secure login to the National Data Store. This means once the changes have been implemented:

• You will no longer receive submissions by email.
• Instead, you will log into the National Data Store to access the data you were receiving by email, and separately to access the contact details of individuals who have consented to be contacted by their local Healthwatch.

Why does Healthwatch England collect people’s experiences?

The Have Your Say form provides an easy way for people to share their experiences of health and care services. Many people discover the Healthwatch England website due to our shared brand presence, which is built on the collective work of local Healthwatch and Healthwatch England.

We receive around 1,500 responses each month, with about half of respondents opting to be contacted by their local Healthwatch via a tickbox prominently located just above the ‘submit’ button. Media coverage and other events often drive spikes in submissions.

How does this benefit local Healthwatch?

People completing the form tell us the area they live in, allowing us to link their feedback to the relevant local Healthwatch.

Under GDPR, we require explicit consent before sharing personal details with you as our organisations are separate legal entities. This is especially important given the sensitive nature of the experiences people share with us. 

We appreciate most members of the public will not see a distinction between their local Healthwatch and Healthwatch England, but on balance we think trying to explain this issue within the form would put some people off completing it, given the significant additional wording which would be required.

The new approach ensures that:

• You can access local insights more securely and with more flexibility – improving the way Healthwatch handles data and reducing reputational risk.
• You can retrieve contact details securely – if an individual has asked to be contacted.

How can local Healthwatch access responses?

All data, including submissions from the Have Your Say Form, Healthwatch reports and data collected by local Healthwatch, is stored securely in the National Data Store. This system will allow for deeper analysis across multiple datasets while ensuring strong data security and GDPR compliance.

We have introduced secure, individual logins for each local Healthwatch so you can:

• Upload your own reports to the Healthwatch National Reports Library.
• Access Have Your Say data and contact details.
• Ensure that data remains secure – you cannot access data outside your area, in line with our data protection policies.

We are also working on a solution to allow access to statistical data on a local, regional and national level.

Healthwatch has long advocated for the ability to contact people who need advice and information—but why has it taken so long?

This has been a significant piece of work and we needed to get it absolutely right, both from a technical and data protection point of view.  

To ensure this, we’ve:  

• Worked closely with our technical suppliers to build secure logins for each Healthwatch,  
• Sought expert guidance to ensure full compliance with GDPR and data protection best practices, and; 
• Piloted the solution with Healthwatch, incorporating feedback to refine it before rollout. 

Why isn’t advice and information more prominent on the webform?

We know there is huge public demand for advice and information on health and care. While providing this support is a key part of local Healthwatch’s role, Healthwatch England does not deliver it directly.

However, because each local Healthwatch is commissioned separately, their capacity to respond to requests varies. A sudden surge in web traffic—especially after media coverage—could overwhelm a small Healthwatch team.

That said, a section providing people with the ability to find and contact their local Healthwatch is prominently featured on our website and attracts a lot of traffic. We also offer people the opportunity to request contact from their local Healthwatch through the webform.

We will continue to review the webform wording, monitor demand, and listen to feedback from Healthwatch to ensure we strike the right balance between providing a great service and managing capacity.

What happens next?

The Digital Team is rolling out this new system in phases to ensure:

• Proper training and support.
• Secure log-in access for each local Healthwatch.

If you’re interested in accessing the system, please email the Digital Team digital@healthwatch.co.uk