The Science and Technology Facilities Council’s Hartree Centre and Alder Hey Children’s NHS Foundation Trust are using advanced digital technologies to develop a smart staff scheduling system that will ease complex rota planning, reduce clinician admin time and support staff wellbeing.

The work is the first phase of a new strategic agreement to collaborate using advanced digital technologies and AI to tackle practical challenges in the NHS, to improve staff wellbeing and resilience for even better patient care.

One of Europe’s biggest and busiest children’s hospitals, Alder Hey provides 24-hour care, balancing planned surgery with emergency demand. Making sure the right staff with the right skills are available at all times requires careful and complex rota planning.

Senior clinicians can spend considerable time each month managing rotas using manual spreadsheets, juggling annual leave, absences, working patterns and on-call rules, while maintaining staff wellbeing and service continuity.

As service demands continue to grow, the Trust identified the need for a modern, reliable scheduling system that frees up valuable clinician time, whilst supporting staff wellbeing, operational efficiency and patient care.

Under a new joint statement of endeavour, the Hartree Centre and Alder Hey have been exploring how advanced digital technologies can transform staff scheduling for the NHS.

In close collaboration with clinicians, the Hartree National Centre for Digital Innovation team has developed an AI-driven system that automatically generates balanced on-call schedules. By incorporating real-world factors such as annual leave, working patterns and staff skills, it can produce rotas that are fair, practical, and more predictable.

A user-friendly interface enables clinicians to review and adjust schedules quickly, maintaining human oversight while replacing manual spreadsheets with a more efficient and reliable approach.