A new partnership between the Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA) and Manchester University NHS Foundation Trust (MFT) aims to help healthcare technologies reach NHS patients faster and more safely
The programme is designed to generate evidence about how innovations perform in everyday healthcare, while ensuring patient safety remains a priority.
Testing technology in real healthcare settings
The Manchester Sandbox will bring regulators, healthcare professionals, researchers and technology developers together earlier in the development process.
Rather than assessing new technologies only in controlled development environments, the Manchester Sandbox will allow selected innovations to be used and evaluated in real NHS settings, with appropriate oversight and safeguards.
The evidence gathered will cover areas including safety, effectiveness, and the impact technologies have on patients and healthcare staff. This could help determine which innovations are suitable for wider NHS adoption.
The programme is also intended to give developers a clearer understanding of the evidence they need to demonstrate before introducing their technologies more widely.
AI among the technologies being explored
The first projects are expected to include AI-enabled medical devices.
These could include tools designed to identify patients at greater risk of complications from long-term health conditions. By identifying potential problems earlier, such technologies could help healthcare professionals provide support and treatment sooner.
The launch event at MFT’s Oxford Road Campus also featured demonstrations of emerging healthcare technologies, including wearable devices and AI-powered Ambient Voice Technology. Some of these technologies are already being used to support patient care and earlier intervention.
Helping the NHS adopt innovation faster
The partnership comes as the NHS looks for ways to improve patient care while managing increasing demand and pressure on services.
By generating evidence in real healthcare environments, the Manchester Sandbox could help NHS organisations make better-informed decisions about which technologies provide genuine benefits.
Successful innovations could be adopted more quickly across the NHS, giving patients nationwide access to technologies shown to work safely and effectively.
The Manchester Sandbox will also explore regulatory approaches that can adapt as technologies develop, including approaches that consider the entire lifecycle of a product rather than focusing only on its initial introduction.
Manchester’s growing role in health innovation
Manchester has become an important centre for healthcare research, digital technology and artificial intelligence, supported by its large NHS services, universities, researchers and growing technology sector.
The new sandbox builds on existing collaboration between healthcare organisations, academic institutions, innovators and regulators across the region.
Later this year, MFT and the MHRA plan to hold a roundtable involving healthcare providers, innovators, researchers and patient and public representatives. The event will help identify future opportunities and shape the next projects.
The MHRA is also expected to invite medical device developers to express their interest in participating in the next phase.
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