Fixed wireless connectivity guidance

The Future Connectivity Programme’s Connectivity Hub produces, sources and shares expert technical knowledge to support the NHS to plan and implement the right connectivity for local needs.

To target and prioritise the right blend of system knowledge and expert independent advice, we engage with health and care organisations, directly and through surveys, to understand their connectivity challenges and procure and publish externally independent commissioned reports into priority topics.

The content is 'supplier agnostic' which means we do not endorse any specific companies, innovations, or approaches. Any mention of, or link to, a specific supplier or product is not an endorsement from the Connectivity Hub or NHS England and is for illustrative purposes only.

Any enquiries on the content of the report should be directed to the NHS England Future Connectivity Programme at [email protected].

This document provides guidance for NHS organisations that seek to maximise primary and secondary connectivity to sites that have connectivity infrastructure challenges utilising fixed wireless connectivity solutions.

The document will:

• outline potential technical options
• detail the potential benefits and considerations as to their use
• provide information on factors that NHS organisations should consider when assessing whether fixed wireless connectivity is suitable for their use

This guidance is written for those that support delivery of healthcare, through NHS commissioned organisations, and connectivity infrastructure decision makers specifically those involved in:

• business case definition for connectivity investment
• budget allocation
• service commissioning
• estates management

We anticipate this guidance will be of most interest to those responsible for primary care, community care and provisioning connectivity in rural and remote locations.

This guidance provides an overview of the health applications and potential benefits of fixed wireless connectivity.

It is designed to be an entry point for any healthcare professional wanting to know more about fixed wireless connectivity and its potential application to healthcare.

The guidance supports Chief Information Officers (CIOs), IT and network managers, operational and estate managers seeking a broad technical understanding of fixed wireless connectivity and potential applications within their organisation and other health environments.

The content aims to support getting the best out of existing infrastructure and connectivity and as such focuses on the most commonly deployed and widely available solutions as at the time of writing.

The content in this guidance is 'supplier agnostic', which means we do not endorse any specific companies, innovations, or approaches. Any mention of, or link to, a specific supplier or product is for illustrative reasons only.

For clarity, any recommendations made in this guidance are those of the guidance author and do not necessarily represent an endorsement, policy, or requirement from NHS England. 

For the purpose of this guidance, fixed wireless means when fixed locations are connected, such as building to building, building to tower, or building to satellite via wireless technologies such as radio or other wireless medium like light (such as a laser).

This technology can be very useful in meeting connectivity needs for organisations, where installation of physical cables utilised by connectivity solutions (such as copper wired or fibre-based technologies like SOTAP, SOGEA or FTTP) is difficult or impossible, such as remote rural locations, where many GP or community sites are located, or to provide resilience in the event of terrestrial cable failure.

This guidance will explore some of the common fixed wireless technologies and give some considerations for its implementation.