South Tees Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust

What South Tees Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust does

South Tees Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust is a UK public benefit corporation and NHS Foundation Trust providing secondary and tertiary healthcare to more than 1.5 million patients across the Tees Valley, North Yorkshire, Durham, and East Cleveland. It is the largest employer in Teesside and North Yorkshire with over 10,000 staff, operating a hub-and-spoke model anchored by The James Cook University Hospital in Middlesbrough (a regional major trauma centre delivering 37 specialties including cancer, cardiothoracic, spinal, renal, cochlear implant, neurosciences, gynaecology, vascular and urology care) and Friarage Hospital in Northallerton (an acute hospital serving a rural catchment of 135,000 and the main site for planned orthopaedic surgery). Three community hospitals in Redcar, East Cleveland, and Richmond extend care closer to patients through urgent treatment centres, rehabilitation wards, and outpatient services.

The trust's technology stack includes three surgical robots (in service since 2014, with the 1,000th robotic-assisted procedure at Friarage completed in January 2026), a robotic exoscope for neurosurgery, stereotactic ablative radiotherapy (SABR), a 21-room imaging department with on-site medical physics, a digital laboratory for 3D surgical planning, and an international flagship TAVI cardiac programme. Digital patient engagement is delivered through a DrDoctor-powered portal (live since March 2024) that replaced Attend Anywhere for video consultations, appointment reminders, and digital letters. Research and education are channelled through STRIVE (South Tees Research, Innovation and Education) and the Durham Tees Valley Research Alliance.

Revenue is overwhelmingly derived from NHS commissioning (NHS England and Integrated Care Boards), funded through UK general taxation and National Insurance, with a marginal private healthcare revenue stream and supplementary fundraising via Our Hospitals Charity and Friends of the Friarage. The trust operates under a statutory framework, is governed by a board of directors and council of governors, and has a wholly-owned subsidiary, South Tees Healthcare Management Limited. South Tees and North Tees and Hartlepool NHS Foundation Trust have formally grouped as University Hospitals Tees to enable closer working without merging legal entities.

Name

South Tees Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust

Legal name

South Tees Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust

Website

https://southtees.nhs.uk

Company type

Private

Founded year

1980

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

5,001–10,000 employees

Short description

South Tees Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust is a UK NHS public benefit corporation operating James Cook University Hospital, Friarage Hospital, and three community hospitals, serving 1.5 million patients across Tees Valley and North Yorkshire with 10,000+ staff and 37 specialties.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Acute Hospital Services

NAICS

General Medical and Surgical Hospitals (622110)

SIC

Services-General Medical & Surgical Hospitals, Nec (8062), Services-Hospitals (8060)

akta.pro primary industry

Community & Regional General Hospitals (HLAFAAAB)

Keywords

• NHS hospital services
• Acute healthcare
• Community healthcare
• Emergency and trauma care
• Specialist tertiary care

Headquarters

HQ city

Middlesbrough

HQ country

United Kingdom

HQ region

Europe

Offices5 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Infrastructure, Technology or R&D, Supply Chain, Others

Revenue model

1. NHS Publicly Funded Healthcare: South Tees Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust operates as part of the UK National Health Service, providing healthcare services free at the point of use. Funded primarily through government taxation and National Insurance contributions. Services are commissioned by NHS England and Clinical Commissioning Groups.
2. Private Healthcare Services: The trust offers a range of private healthcare services across the trust, providing an alternative revenue stream for patients seeking private treatment options within NHS facilities.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels8 records

Marketing channels10 records

Core offering

South Tees Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust is a UK NHS public benefit corporation that delivers publicly funded acute, emergency, trauma, and community healthcare to more than 1.5 million patients across the Tees Valley, North Yorkshire, Durham and East Yorkshire. Its core services are provided through a multi-site hospital network led by the James Cook University Hospital (regional major trauma centre with 37 specialties) and Friarage Hospital, supplemented by community hospitals and supported by a robotic surgery programme, advanced cancer care, TAVI heart procedures, specialist rehabilitation, and digital patient engagement via DrDoctor video consultations. It also offers fee-based private healthcare services as a supplementary revenue line.

Product overview

South Tees Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust operates a network of hospital and community healthcare facilities providing services to over 1.5 million patients across the Tees Valley and North Yorkshire. The trust's core offerings include two main acute hospitals: The James Cook University Hospital (regional major trauma centre with 37 specialties) and Friarage Hospital (specializing in planned orthopaedic surgery). These are supported by community hospitals in Redcar, East Cleveland, and The Friary. The trust's digital patient services are delivered through a Patient Engagement Portal that includes DrDoctor video consultations, appointment management, and digital communications. Specialized services include a robotic surgery programme with three surgical robots, STRIVE research and education centre, and the James Cook Cancer Institute. The trust also operates Our Hospitals Charity for fundraising support.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• The James Cook University Hospital Regional major trauma centre and tertiary hospital in Middlesbrough delivering 37 specialties on one site, including cancer, cardiothoracic, spinal, renal, cochlear implant, neurosciences, gynaecology, vascular and urology care, and a 24-hour Accident & Emergency department.
• Friarage Hospital Acute hospital in Northallerton serving a rural population of 135,000, with a 24-hour urgent treatment centre and the main site for planned orthopaedic surgery in a new £35.5 million surgical hub.
• Redcar Primary Care Hospital Community hospital in Redcar providing an urgent treatment centre (8am-midnight), Zetland Ward for adult rehabilitation and specialist stroke rehabilitation, outpatient clinics, and an operating theatre for minor surgical procedures under local or regional anaesthetic.
• East Cleveland Primary Care Hospital Community hospital in Brotton offering Tocketts Ward for rehabilitation and palliative care, an outpatient department, and a wide range of consultant-led outpatient clinics.
• The Friary Community Hospital Community hospital in Richmond providing Victoria Ward for palliative care, rehabilitation and convalescence, plus outpatient clinics, physiotherapy, audiology and x-ray services, jointly delivered with North Yorkshire Social Services.
• Urgent Treatment Centres Four urgent treatment centres across Teesside (including 24-hour at James Cook, 24-hour at Friarage, and 8am-midnight at Redcar) providing treatment for minor illnesses and injuries.
• Robotic Surgery Programme Three surgical robots plus a robotic exoscope delivering minimally invasive procedures across multiple specialties including colorectal, urology and orthopaedic surgery, with neurosurgeons operating under 4K-3D visualisation of the brain and spine.
• James Cook Cancer Institute Comprehensive cancer centre providing state-of-the-art cancer treatments including stereotactic ablative radiotherapy (SABR) that delivers very high doses of radiation to tumours with extreme accuracy, alongside rapid diagnostic centre services.
• Patient Engagement Portal Digital platform providing secure online access to outpatient appointment information, video consultations, appointment reminders, digital letters and patient communications for South Tees patients.
• DrDoctor Video Consultations Video consultation service enabling patients to attend outpatient appointments remotely via a secure video link sent by text or email, replacing the previous Attend Anywhere platform.
• STRIVE (South Tees Research, Innovation and Education) Research, innovation and education centre incorporating the Durham Tees Valley Research Alliance, South Tees Innovation, medical education, leadership academy, training, apprenticeships, simulation, library facilities and clinical skills teaching.
• Private Healthcare Services Fee-based private healthcare services offered across the trust's hospitals, providing an alternative pathway for patients seeking private treatment within the trust's facilities.
• Our Hospitals Charity Charitable arm of the trust that enhances care and the hospital environment for patients across Teesside and North Yorkshire through fundraising, donations, events, campaigns and appeals.

Quantifiable outcome

• 4,400+ babies delivered annually
• +3 more outcomes

Named customers2 records

Segments1 record

Ideal customer profiles2 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Integration6 records

Feature7 records

Partnerships

Seven partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• University Hospitals Tees (with North Tees and Hartlepool NHS Foundation Trust)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerNorth Tees and Hartlepool NHS Foundation Trust and South Tees Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust have formally agreed to form a group to enable closer working across the two organisations. This is not a merger - both trusts remain as separate organisations keeping their own existing identities and names, but when working together can collectively be known as University Hospitals Tees. The Group Chair is Derek Bell and Group Chief Executive is Stacey Hunter.
• Friends of the FriaragecoreGTM or Marketing PartnerSupporting the Friarage Hospital and local community for over 65 years. The charity has made many developments possible at the Friarage including the endoscopy and urology diagnostic hub, dialysis unit, eye unit, rapid diagnostic centre, Sir Robert Ogden Macmillan Centre, and STRIVE education centre.
• Our Hospitals CharitycoreGTM or Marketing PartnerOur Hospitals Charity enhances care and the hospital environment for South Tees patients across Teesside and North Yorkshire. Supports extra resources to make life more comfortable and provide a more pleasant experience for patients, visitors and staff. Has supported developments including new facilities at the Friarage.
• NHS Property ServicesminorOthersOwns the Redcar Primary Care Hospital building.
• North Yorkshire Social ServicesminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerJointly provides intermediate care facility with the trust at The Friary Community Hospital.
• Durham Tees Valley Research AlliancecoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerPart of STRIVE Research incorporating the Durham Tees Valley Research Alliance and South Tees Innovation for research collaboration.
• Catterick Integrated Care CentreminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerJoint collaboration between NHS and Ministry of Defence (MOD) - first of its kind integrated care centre bringing health and social care services together under one roof.

Scale indicators11 records

Recent moves7 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Direct peers

• Leeds Teaching Hospitals NHS Trust: Major NHS teaching hospital trust of similar scale providing a broad range of tertiary specialties, with a multi-site operating model analogous to South Tees.
• Sheffield Teaching Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust: Large NHS Foundation Trust with a full range of acute, tertiary, and community services; comparable in scale, scope, and academic hospital status.
• County Durham and Darlington NHS Foundation Trust: Adjacent regional NHS trust serving County Durham with multiple hospital sites and community services; competes for some referrals and shares workforce and commissioning relationships with South Tees.
• Newcastle upon Tyne Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust: Large NHS teaching trust in the North East providing major trauma, tertiary specialties, and research infrastructure closely comparable to James Cook University Hospital's role.
• North Tees and Hartlepool NHS Foundation Trust: Partner trust in the University Hospitals Tees group; comparable NHS acute and community provider serving adjacent Teesside populations with similar specialties and commissioning environment.

Others

• Bupa UK: Private healthcare provider operating UK hospitals and clinics; not a direct NHS competitor but an alternative provider in the same UK market, particularly relevant to South Tees' private patient service line.
• Spire Healthcare: UK private hospital group offering elective and diagnostic services that overlap with South Tees' private healthcare arm and adjacent to its NHS elective offering.

Regional players

• Hull University Teaching Hospitals NHS Trust: Regional NHS teaching trust serving the Humber and parts of North Yorkshire, overlapping with South Tees' catchment for tertiary referrals in a different but neighbouring geography.

Broad incumbents

• Manchester University NHS Foundation Trust: One of the largest NHS acute and tertiary providers in the UK, with a multi-site model and academic/research footprint that positions it as a broader-incumbent peer for very large NHS Foundation Trusts.
• Nottingham University Hospitals NHS Trust: Major NHS teaching trust providing a comparable range of tertiary services across multiple sites; useful broader-incumbent benchmark for academic NHS trusts of similar scale.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/southtees
• YouTubeyoutube.com/southtees
• Facebookfacebook.com/SouthTeesHospitals
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/south-tees-hospital-nhs-foundation-trust

Compliance5 records

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles3 records

Subsidiaries1 record

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

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M&A

Investments

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Frequently asked questions about South Tees Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust