National Imaging Registry
The National Imaging Registry (NIR) lets clinicians securely access a patient’s imaging history and reports from other organisations in England, supporting safe, real‑time image sharing so imaging follows the patient across care settings.
About this service
The National Imaging Registry (NIR) is a strategic digital service developed as part of NHS England’s Diagnostics Digital Capability Programme. It provides a standards-based national infrastructure that enables interoperable access to diagnostic imaging and reports across NHS and approved independent sector organisations.
NIR addresses longstanding challenges in accessing prior imaging, supporting safer clinical decision-making, reducing unnecessary repeat scans, and improving coordination of care across pathways and organisations.
Privacy
To use the NIR, your organisation should have a publicly available privacy notice.
Who this service is for
You can use this service if you are part of:
- clinical organisations, networks and trusts (NHS and private providers)
- clinical teams and radiologists
- cancer multidisciplinary teams (MDTs) and cross-site specialties
- imaging system suppliers and IT delivery teams
Benefits
- reduced duplication of imaging, improving patient safety and clinical productivity
- improved equity of access to diagnostic imaging across England
- easier access to prior imaging for MDTs and cross-site working
- reduced reliance on image transfer portals and associated licensing costs
- environmental benefits through reduced data transfer and re-imaging
How to access this service
- NIR Cross-Community Access (XCA) Provider assurance questions
Use these example questions if you are providing an XCA solution. They show the full set of onboarding requirements you must meet, including technical conformance, clinical safety, information governance and operational readiness, before you can provide XCA services. - NIR Cross-Community Access (XCA) Consumer assurance questions
Use these example questions if you are consuming XCA services. They show the full set of onboarding requirements you must meet, including technical conformance, clinical safety, information governance and operational readiness, before you can access and use XCA data.
Examples of use
Clinicians and healthcare teams use the NIR to find and view diagnostic images and reports quickly from other NHS sites and approved independent providers.
NIR helps ensure that imaging follows the patient — improving safety, reducing delays, and cutting down on unnecessary repeat scans.
How it's used
- a stroke specialist can instantly view CT images taken at a local hospital before a patient transfer
- cancer MDT members can review MRI and PET scans from several hospitals in one session
- trauma teams can access X-rays and CTs taken before the patient arrives at a major centre
- radiologists can compare current studies with previous ones from another trust for better reporting
- independent providers carrying out NHS-funded work can securely share results back with referring NHS teams
NIR connects existing hospital systems, so there’s no new platform or user interface to learn — just faster, safer access to the images and reports clinicians need.
National usage policy
The NIR is the national NHS service for sharing diagnostic images and reports safely between hospitals, imaging networks and approved independent providers.
Use of the NIR is recommended for all organisations that carry out NHS-funded imaging. It helps make sure that scans and reports follow the patient wherever they go, reducing duplication, speeding up diagnosis and improving safety.
During the national rollout, joining NIR will become available for all public and private healthcare organisations making use of imaging services across England.
Roadmap
Find out what we're working on now and what we plan to do in the future.
Status, service level and current usage
The NIR is currently moving towards a private beta go live phase, supporting live image and report sharing across NHS Imaging Networks and approved independent providers. A full national rollout is planned for 2026 to 2027.
This service is a bronze service, this means it's available 24 hours a day, 365 days a year and supported from 8am to 6pm, Monday to Friday excluding bank holidays. Availability and performance are monitored by NHS England to ensure reliability during core working hours. After private beta initial phases are completed, the NIR will move towards a gold standard service, which means 24 hours a day 365 days a year support.
Private beta usage
- live image sharing across 3 imaging networks
- thousands of diagnostic studies will be discovered or retrieved during the beta phase
- additional networks are preparing to join the next onboarding wave, including independent sector providers
- used by radiologists, reporting radiographers, and clinicians for direct patient care in live clinical workflows, using real data
Contact us
| Enquiry | Contact |
|---|---|
| Live service incident |
National Service Desk Email: [email protected] Report via our customer portal Telephone: 0300 303 5035 |
| General enquires |
NIR Product Team Email: [email protected] |
| Strategic direction and escalations |
Shan Rahulan Email: [email protected] |
Further information
Use this API to access patient imaging records across NHS and private healthcare networks. The National Imaging Registry (NIR) API allows authorised systems to view a patient’s imaging history, including examinations, diagnostic reports, and imaging studies.
Guidance for organisations on updating their privacy notices to include the National Imaging Registry (NIR).
Governance arrangements for the National Imaging Registry, including clinical safety responsibilities, audit and access reporting, and supporting documentation.
An overview of how the National Imaging Registry (NIR) enables clinicians to discover and retrieve imaging‑related records across organisations, now and in the future.
Last edited: 1 May 2026 5:02 pm