Modernising pathology services in south east London
In 2018, the NHS health and care system in south east London (now the ICB) invited tenders for a provider to manage and transform local pathology services in partnership with the two NHS hospital Trusts - Guy’s and St Thomas’ NHS Foundation Trust, and King’s College Hospital NHS Foundation Trust.
It was recognised that a transformation of the size and scale required would not be possible without an investment partner due to a number of reasons.
- Aged estate and equipment: Many laboratories, scientific instruments and IT systems were outdated and inefficient, with unplanned downtime causing regular service interruptions
- Inequality and inconsistency: Different laboratory practices meant unequal access to testing services, added complexity reviewing patients’ test results and increased clinical risk. It also limited flexible staffing between laboratories, affecting business continuity at times of high demand
- Modernisation: Major change was needed to meet the growing scale and complexity of patient need in a modern NHS
- Staff experience and opportunity: Outdated instruments and digital systems left experienced staff dealing with avoidable administration, manual processing and equipment downtime instead of skilled pathology science work
- Value for money: An inefficient system meant pathology services were more costly than elsewhere in the NHS
A joint venture between SYNLAB and the NHS
Following a comprehensive procurement process, the NHS chose SYNLAB as its preferred bidder. Building on the incumbent service, called Viapath, a new pathology partnership was created in April 2021, jointly owned by Guy’s and St Thomas’ NHS Foundation Trust, King’s College Hospital NHS Trust, and SYNLAB. The service was rebranded in 2022 as ‘Synnovis’.
In addition to the six hospitals belonging to Trust partners, Synnovis provides testing and diagnostic services to South London and Maudsley NHS Foundation Trust and GPs across the boroughs of Bexley, Bromley, Greenwich, Lewisham, Lambeth and Southwark. Many NHS services across the UK also use Synnovis for specialist tests.
SYNLAB’s involvement in the pathology partnership is twofold. Firstly, SYNLAB brings scientific expertise and the experience of successfully transforming two major NHS pathology services elsewhere. Secondly, SYNLAB is funding the multi-million-pound investment needed to transform and modernise the service.
What the new service will look like
When complete, the transformation will see the consolidation of more than 90 separate laboratories across six hospital sites into Essential Services Laboratories (ESLs), and a single central hub laboratory in Blackfriars. The ESLs (one for each hospital) will provide rapid testing for inpatients and emergency cases, while the hub will handle routine and non-urgent tests.
The illustration below provides an overview of the future hub and spoke services, including a small number of specialist service laboratories which will remain on site.
By completion in 2026, the transformed service will deliver:
- Earlier patient diagnosis, enabling faster treatment through improved turnaround times and testing at a molecular level
- More reliable and resilient pathology services with reduced instrument downtime, more flexible staffing between laboratories, and consolidated IT arrangements and upgrades
- Major advances in technology, including remote digital access to sample slides
- Around 7,000m2 of valuable hospital space handed back to NHS partners to use for patient care (equivalent to around 190 operating theatres)
- All testing arrangements will be the same across the south east London network, improving clinical experience and reducing clinical risk
- Greater access to innovation, research and development opportunities
- Better working environments for laboratory employees
- Reduced pathology costs over the lifetime of the contract, despite the initial investment
- A modern pathology service which caters to the evolving needs of patients and the NHS
SYNLAB is also investing in an ‘Innovator Accelerator Fund’ (IAF) for the 15 year term of the partnership. This is a ringfenced reserve which can be accessed by colleagues within partner Trusts and Synnovis. IAF funded projects will make a major contribution to improved patient outcomes, as well as advancements in scientific and clinical practice. Between March 2022 and November 2024, the IAF has invested £2.4 million into 45 clinical/scientific projects.
Last updated: 27/05/2025
