How HeadChannel Built a Customer Portal for NHS Property Services

NHS Property Services (NHSPS) manages, maintains and improves properties and facilities for the NHS, overseeing thousands of properties across England. It asked HeadChannel to build a customer portal that would streamline communication, automate routine tasks and make customer interactions more efficient.

The Challenge

NHSPS relied on a manual, fragmented system. Simple, repetitive tasks took up the customer services team's time and left less of it for complex cases. Customers and staff tracked queries by phone and email, which led to delays and confusion. The existing systems didn't integrate with each other, so nobody could see up-to-date information instantly, and NHSPS needed more automation to raise productivity and respond to customers faster.

The Approach

Discovery. HeadChannel ran functional and non-functional requirements workshops with NHSPS, reviewed the existing documentation and identified gaps in the process flows. The result was a detailed product backlog and a functional specification.

Design. The UX and UI team refined NHSPS's existing mockups into a web and mobile experience that meets the WCAG 2.0 accessibility standards.

A modular architecture. The team chose the ABP.io framework and built a modular monolith, so NHSPS could upgrade the system later without affecting existing modules. The portal is hosted on Azure, with an ASP.NET Core web API and an Angular front end.

Integration. The portal connects to several external systems through APIs and keeps data available in real time without compromising performance. A Redis cache reduces data access latency, and SignalR handles messaging and push notifications.

Security and testing. Azure AD, Azure AD B2C and Identity Server 4 handle authentication and access control. The CI/CD pipeline runs static code analysis, unit tests and API stress tests.

Automation. Query tracking and notifications are automated, so customers could follow the status of a query in the portal instead of chasing it.

The Outcome

With simple, repetitive tasks automated, the customer service team could focus on complex cases, and response times came down. Customers now track their queries online instead of calling the contact centre for an update. Real-time data from the integrated systems helps NHSPS manage information and make decisions, and Azure AD secures access and protects sensitive customer data. The modular architecture lets NHSPS add features without affecting what already works.

The portal has improved the experience for customers and staff alike.