Healthwatch Newcastle

What Healthwatch Newcastle does

Healthwatch Newcastle is a statutory non-profit organization operating as the local health and social care champion for Newcastle upon Tyne under the Health and Social Care Act 2012. It is part of the national Healthwatch network governed by Healthwatch England, and serves Newcastle residents by collecting public feedback on NHS and social care services through the Have Your Say survey (available in standard, Easy Read PDF, and British Sign Language formats), a telephone helpline, weekly in-person drop-in sessions hosted at partner venues such as Action Foundation, and targeted outreach to underserved communities including refugees, young people aged 14-25 via Youthwatch, and residents in deprived wards (Walker, Byker, Elswick, Benwell). The organization publishes research reports on topics such as Accessible Information & Health Literacy, Reasonable Adjustments, Modern General Practice Access, and Dentistry in Newcastle & Gateshead, alongside You Said, We Did case studies demonstrating tangible service improvements driven by public feedback.

Its core service offerings are not technology products in the conventional sense but a portfolio of advocacy, information, and engagement services: advice and information resources covering NHS dental care, GP registration, pharmacy services, and emergency care navigation; community engagement events; complaint signposting; and accessible-format content (large print, audio, braille, BSL videos). Underlying infrastructure is limited to standard web and communications tooling: Google Analytics and Facebook Pixel for audience measurement, Mailchimp for bi-monthly newsletters, and Microsoft Teams for accessible online events. The website is fully compliant with WCAG 2.1 AA accessibility standards, and the organization holds GDPR and Data Protection Act 2018 compliance.

The business model is a government-grant-funded non-profit. Healthwatch Newcastle receives funding from Healthwatch England and local health authorities to discharge its statutory duty; all services to the public are provided free of charge, with no commercial revenue streams. Its go-to-market is community-led, relying on multi-channel distribution (website, social media across Twitter/X, YouTube, LinkedIn, Facebook, Instagram, RSS, email newsletter, and in-person events) and on data flows to statutory partners including the Care Quality Commission, NHS England, the North East and North Cumbria Integrated Care Board, and Newcastle City Council. Governance is provided by a committee structure chaired by Alex Hoole, with a small staff team (11-50 employees) supplemented by volunteers coordinated through initiatives such as Youthwatch.

Name

Healthwatch Newcastle

Legal name

Healthwatch Newcastle

Website

https://healthwatchnewcastle.org.uk

Company type

Private

Founded year

2013

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

Healthwatch Newcastle is a statutory non-profit that collects and channels public feedback on NHS and social care services in Newcastle, operating a helpline, drop-in sessions, and research publications as part of the national Healthwatch England network.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Health Advocacy Services

NAICS

Other Individual and Family Services (62419), Other Individual and Family Services (624190)

SIC

Services-Social Services (8300), Services-Health Services (8000)

akta.pro primary industry

Behavioral Risk & Health Survey Surveillance (HLAJANAD)

Keywords

• Health advocacy services
• Social care feedback
• Patient engagement
• Community health information
• Health service monitoring

Headquarters

HQ city

Newcastle Upon Tyne

HQ country

United Kingdom

HQ region

Europe

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Others

Revenue model

1. Public Funding: Healthwatch Newcastle operates as a publicly funded organization receiving funding from Healthwatch England and local health authorities to carry out its statutory duty to gather public views on health and social care services.

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels4 records

Marketing channels9 records

Core offering

Healthwatch Newcastle collects feedback from Newcastle residents on their experiences of NHS and social care services and shares this evidence with Healthwatch England, the CQC, the North East and North Cumbria ICB, NHS England, and Newcastle City Council to drive service improvement. It provides free, confidential information, signposting, and complaint support via a helpline and community drop-in sessions, and publishes accessible advice resources, case studies, and research reports.

Product overview

Healthwatch Newcastle is a health and social care advocacy organization providing community engagement and feedback services rather than a traditional software product. Its core offerings consist of the Have Your Say survey (available in standard, Easy Read, and BSL formats) for collecting public experiences of NHS and social care services, supported by an information helpline and regular drop-in sessions. The organization publishes You Said, We Did case studies demonstrating service improvements based on feedback, provides advice and information resources on topics like dental care, GP registration, and emergency services, and produces research reports on local health and social care issues.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Have Your Say Survey A feedback collection survey that enables members of the Newcastle public to share their experiences of NHS and social care services. Available in standard, Easy Read PDF, and British Sign Language (BSL) formats to ensure accessibility.
• Information Helpline and Drop-In Sessions Provides confidential, independent information and signposting about local health and social care services through a telephone helpline and weekly in-person drop-in sessions hosted across Newcastle, including at partner venues such as Action Foundation.
• You Said, We Did Case Studies Regularly published case studies that document how public feedback collected by Healthwatch Newcastle has led to tangible improvements in local health and social care services.
• Advice and Information Resources Public-facing informational resources covering health topics including NHS dental care, GP registration, pharmacy services, emergency care navigation, and seasonal health advice for Newcastle residents.
• Research and Reports Published research reports on health and social care topics including Accessible Information & Health Literacy, Reasonable Adjustments, Modern General Practice Access, and Dentistry in Newcastle & Gateshead, used to inform commissioners and providers.

Quantifiable outcome

• Helping members of the public every week through information helpline and in-person support at regular drop-in sessions

Named customers2 records

Segments4 records

Ideal customer profiles1 record

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Integration4 records

Partnerships

Eight partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• Healthwatch EnglandcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerNational parent organization that Healthwatch Newcastle is part of. Healthwatch England sets the overall direction and represents local Healthwatch organizations at the national level. Data and insights are shared to inform national health policy.
• Care Quality Commission (CQC)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerThe CQC is the independent regulator of health and social care in England. Healthwatch Newcastle shares public feedback with CQC to help inform their assessments of local services.
• North East and North Cumbria Integrated Care Board (ICB)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerThe ICB is responsible for NHS services in the region. Healthwatch Newcastle shares public feedback to help commissioners understand service provision and make improvements.
• Local Healthwatch Network (North East & North Cumbria)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerAll 14 Healthwatch organizations across the North East & North Cumbria work together on shared projects such as the Modern General Practice Access report, pooling resources and public feedback.
• Action FoundationminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerLocal charity that hosts regular drop-in sessions where Healthwatch Newcastle staff provide in-person support and gather community feedback.
• NHS EnglandcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerNational NHS body that receives public feedback through Healthwatch channels to inform health policy and service planning.
• Newcastle City CouncilcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerLocal authority responsible for social care services. Healthwatch Newcastle provides feedback on adult social care services and responds to CQC assessments of the council's social care responsibilities.
• Healthwatch NorthumberlandminorChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorAdjacent local Healthwatch organization that receives referrals when issues fall outside Newcastle boundaries, demonstrating inter-Healthwatch collaboration.

Scale indicators2 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights4 records

Broad incumbents

• Citizens Advice: A national network of independent advice charities that also helps Newcastle residents navigate health and social care systems and make complaints. Operates a broader welfare and consumer mandate but overlaps directly on health-and-care advice and information services.
• Healthwatch England: The national umbrella body and statutory parent of Healthwatch Newcastle. Operates the same advocacy and public-feedback mandate at a national level and is the formal channel through which Healthwatch Newcastle's insights flow into national policy.

Direct peers

• Healthwatch Gateshead: An immediately adjacent local Healthwatch covering the neighbouring borough of Gateshead. Operates the identical statutory model with the same product suite (Have Your Say surveys, information helpline, drop-in sessions) and frequently pools research with Healthwatch Newcastle on topics such as dentistry access.
• POhWER: A major independent NHS Complaints Advocacy provider covering much of England, including the North East. Operates a directly overlapping service — helping individuals navigate and complain about NHS services — and competes for the same commissioner-funded advocacy mandate.
• Healthwatch South Tyneside: Local Healthwatch covering South Tyneside under the same statutory framework. Comparable in size, scope, and delivery model, and a regional peer within the North East & North Cumbria network.
• Healthwatch County Durham: Local Healthwatch covering County Durham within the same North East & North Cumbria regional network. Delivers the same statutory health and social care advocacy mandate under the same national framework.
• Healthwatch Cumbria: Local Healthwatch covering the Cumbria footprint within the same North East & North Cumbria Integrated Care Board area. Operates the identical public-feedback and signposting mandate.
• Healthwatch Northumberland: Neighbouring local Healthwatch that receives referrals from Healthwatch Newcastle when issues fall outside Newcastle boundaries. Runs the same statutory function under the same national framework and is an explicit cross-referral partner.
• Healthwatch Sunderland: Local Healthwatch for Sunderland, part of the same North East & North Cumbria regional collaboration. Engages in joint regional reports such as Modern General Practice Access alongside Healthwatch Newcastle.
• Healthwatch North Tyneside: Another North East local Healthwatch operating the same community-feedback and information-service model for North Tyneside residents. Part of the same 14-organisation North East & North Cumbria collaboration network.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/HWNewcastle
• YouTubeyoutube.com/user/HealthwatchNewcastle
• Facebookfacebook.com/HWNewcastle
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/healthwatch-newcastle
• Instagraminstagram.com/healthwatchnewcastle

Compliance3 records

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles2 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Healthwatch Newcastle