NHS Hack Day celebrates practical, user-centred improvements to health and care.
Submissions should offer concrete contributions, by example, to the question: How can we build an environment where world class NHS digital services flourish?
Although, submissions do not need to be digital (e.g. a ‘card game’ would be fine if it meets the rest of the brief!).
Red Lines
These are red lines governing whether a project is eligible for a prize:
Something usable must exist. A demo, tool, dataset, service sketch, policy draft or prototype — so long as someone could get value from it tomorrow. Slides alone aren’t enough.
Built this weekend. If you extend an existing project, only the weekend’s contribution is judged. If you present a contribution not build during the weekend, it is not eligible for a prize. (This ensures we celebrate genuine weekend creativity, not polished marketing pitches.)
No pre-built commercial apps. Commerical or semi-commercial products developed over many months are not eligible for prizes. Projects that are built to enhance an existing commercial or semi-commercial product are not eligible for prizes.
Core Evaluation Criteria
1. Problem & insight – Is this a real, clearly articulated problem grounded in lived experience and/or frontline practice?
What we’re looking for:
- a clear problem statement
- evidence that it is a real problem that has come from patients, carers or staff
- explanation of why any existing solutions fall short
2. Impact & inclusion – Who benefits and by how much — and does the idea consider patients/carers, accessibility, equity and safety?
What we’re looking for:
- articulation of the likely scale of benefit, and where will the benefit be felt
- consideration of underserved and seldomly heard groups
- acknowledgment of safety risks and approaches to mitigation
3. Approach & learning – Are the methods sensible, with user input, evidence-informed choices, and ethical use of data/AI?
What we’re looking for:
- evidence of user research, quick tests, references to prior art
- consideration of ethical / data safeguards
- communication of what was learned over the weekend
4. Prototype & feasibility - Does something actually work and/or is there a credible path to next steps in the real world?
What we’re looking for:
- a working demo, protoype, artefact (not just slides)
- a realistic plan for pilots, finding partners, regulation or operations
5. Teamwork & clarity – Is the story clear, honest about limits, open to feedback, and was there good multidisciplinary collaboration?
What we’re looking for:
- a concise narrative about the problem
- reflection on what’s hard about tackling the problem
- evidence of multi-disciplinary contribution
- balanced voices during the presentation, and credit appropriately distributed
Bonus Points
1. Hard Problems – tackling something genuinely tough counts. A brave attempt on a difficult issue can be as impressive as a slick fix for an easy one.
2. Minimal effort or a short path to real-world value – small, practical changes that create immediate benefit score highly.
3. Policy Bombs – if your prototype usefully challenges an ineffective or over-funded policy, it deserves at least an honourable mention.
4. Humour & joy – if it makes people smile while helping someone in need, all the better.