GP practices lose online services after digital supplier collapses

Hundreds of GP practices across England and Wales have lost access to websites and online consultation services after healthcare technology supplier Schappit Ltd, trading as Silicon Practice, entered administration and ceased operating.

NHS England said fewer than 500 practices, less than 10% of those in England were affected. Disruption has been reported across London, Gloucestershire, Hertfordshire, Bedfordshire, Norfolk, Essex and parts of Wales.

Silicon Practice supplied practice websites, the FootFall online consultation platform and chatbot services. Their loss means some patients cannot submit online appointment requests or medical forms, while affected surgeries face additional pressure on telephone lines and reception teams.

Several practices said their websites were removed with little notice. However, the appointed administrator said NHS England had been contacted shortly before the administration began and warned that the business would cease trading without continued financial support. The company stopped operating at 5.30pm on 27 October.

GP surgeries remain open, and the incident has not removed patients’ right to access care. People whose practice website is unavailable should follow local instructions and contact the surgery by telephone or in person. The NHS App and other systems may remain available, depending on the practice.

Patients who submitted an online request shortly before the shutdown and have received no response should contact their surgery to check whether it arrived. Integrated care boards and NHS England are helping practices establish temporary arrangements and move to replacement providers, but some surgeries have warned that restoring full online services could take several weeks.

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