Patient Experience Network

What Patient Experience Network does

Patient Experience Network (now operating as the Picker Experience Network) is a UK-registered not-for-profit founded in 2010 and acquired by Picker Institute Europe in 2023. It runs the Picker Experience Network National Awards (PEN Awards), described as the original patient experience awards in the UK, now in their fourteenth year. The programme recognises excellence in person-centred care across multiple categories, with 60+ expert judges participating annually and over 100 finalists, winners and runners-up each cycle.

The organisation's core product is the annual awards programme, supported by a digital ecosystem comprising the PEN Portal (penportal.co.uk) for self-service award submissions, a Resources Hub containing hundreds of case studies and authored reports, the monthly PENLetter newsletter, the Patient Experience Book Club, Patient Experience Radio, webinars and workshops, and Patient Experience Week programming. It is not a technology product company; underlying technology is limited to a WordPress-based website with cookie compliance and Google Analytics integration, and a dedicated entry submission portal. There are no AI capabilities, APIs, or SDKs disclosed.

Revenue is generated through awards entry fees (£249 + VAT for a first entry, £199 + VAT for additional entries, £169 + VAT loyalty pricing for returning 2025 entrants) and event place sales (£299 + VAT for non-entrant attendees). Students and patient representatives receive free entry in certain categories, with a bursary fund available to support patient attendance. Customer segments are UK NHS Trusts and Foundation Trusts as primary buyers, alongside independent/private healthcare providers, with secondary audiences including healthcare professionals, students, patients and carers, and commissioners. Named award participants include University College London Hospitals, Barts Health, Great Ormond Street Hospital, Leeds Teaching Hospitals, and Royal Devon.

Name

Patient Experience Network

Legal name

Picker Experience Network

Website

https://patientexperiencenetwork.org

Company type

Private

Founded year

2010

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

The Picker Experience Network (formerly Patient Experience Network) is a UK not-for-profit that runs the country's original patient experience awards programme, recognising excellence in person-centred care across NHS Trusts and independent healthcare providers through annual awards, a case study library, and community events.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Healthcare Awards and Patient Experience Community

NAICS

Religious, Grantmaking, Civic, Professional, and Similar Organizations (813)

akta.pro industry

PRIMARYMPAGAOAN

Virtual Awards Ceremonies & Competitions (Judging, Voting)

Media, Entertainment & Sports/Live Entertainment & Events (Concerts, Theater, Festivals)/Virtual & Hybrid Events

SECONDARYTHAHABAH

Healthcare, Medical Devices & Pharma Shows Organizers

Travel & Hospitality/MICE (Meetings, Incentives, Conferences & Exhibitions)/Exhibition & Trade Show Organizers

Keywords

• Patient experience awards
• Healthcare recognition programme
• Shared learning resources
• Person-centred care
• Healthcare community network

Headquarters

HQ city

Birmingham

HQ country

United Kingdom

HQ region

Europe

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Technology or R&D, Others

Revenue model

1. Awards Programme Fees: Revenue is generated through entry fees for the annual Picker Experience Network Awards. Pricing tiers include first entry (£249 + VAT), additional entries (£199 + VAT), loyalty pricing for returning 2025 entrants (£169 + VAT), and free entry for students and patients in certain categories. Additional event places are sold separately.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels9 records

Core offering

The Patient Experience Network runs the UK and Ireland's original annual patient experience awards programme (PEN Awards), recognising outstanding patient experience initiatives across health and social care. Surrounding the awards is a curated resources library of case studies, reports and newsletters, an online submission portal (PEN Portal), workshops, webinars, a Book Club, Patient Experience Radio, and community events including Patient Experience Week. The offering is positioned as a recognition and shared-learning community rather than a software product.

Product overview

The Picker Experience Network (formerly Patient Experience Network) is an independent organization that connects healthcare professionals and organizations committed to improving patient experience. The core offering is the PEN Awards program—an annual awards ceremony recognizing excellence in patient experience across UK health and social care—with multiple award categories covering areas like cancer care, communication, staff engagement, and innovation. Supporting the awards is a Resources Hub containing case studies, reports, newsletters, and educational content, plus the PEN Portal for award submissions. Additional programs include Patient Experience Week celebrations and community initiatives like the Book Club and Radio. Together, these products form a networked improvement community rather than a unified software platform.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Quantifiable outcome

• 14th year of awards programme as of 2024, demonstrating sustained operation and credibility
• +3 more outcomes

Named customers12 records

Segments6 records

Ideal customer profiles4 records

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

Two partnerships are on record, tiered minor and core.

• National Wound Care Strategy ProgrammeminorOthersListed as a partner/resource on the PEN website. The National Wound Care Strategy Programme collaborates with PEN to share resources related to wound care patient experience as part of PEN's broader resource hub.
• Picker Institute EuropecoreOthersThe Picker Experience Network is part of Picker Institute Europe. Picker was founded on the belief that people's experiences are the ultimate measure of quality. For more than three decades Picker has turned experience into evidence, standards, measurement tools and learning programmes. PEN extends that work by ensuring improvement is recognised, shared, and accelerated.

Scale indicators4 records

Recent moves8 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Broad incumbents

• NHS Providers Awards: Membership organisation for NHS Trusts that runs its own annual awards and recognition programmes. Operates in the same NHS Trust recognition space as PEN but as part of a broader membership and policy advocacy portfolio.
• Health Foundation: UK-based independent health charity that funds improvement programmes, runs awards such as the Q Initiative, and produces influential healthcare quality research. Comparable mission around healthcare improvement and shared learning.
• NHS Confederation: Membership body for the whole NHS system in England, Wales and Northern Ireland, providing networking, events, and recognition opportunities. Comparable as a UK healthcare community convening organisation, but broader in scope than patient-experience-only focus.
• Institute for Healthcare Improvement (IHI): Global healthcare quality improvement organisation that runs forums, recognition programmes, and training. Comparable mission around improving patient experience and care quality, but at significantly larger scale and with a US-centric footprint.

Direct peers

• Health Service Journal Awards (HSJ Awards): One of the most prominent UK healthcare awards programmes, recognising excellence across NHS and healthcare organisations. Directly competes with PEN Awards for the same NHS Trust entrants, sponsorships, and recognition mindshare, but operates at a much larger scale and with media backing.
• The Beryl Institute (Patient Experience): Global community of practice dedicated to improving the patient experience across healthcare, with its own awards and certification programmes. Closely comparable in mission and community-led model to PEN, but operates primarily in the US and has a larger membership base.
• Nursing Times Awards: UK-based annual awards celebrating excellence in nursing and midwifery. Directly competes for nursing team recognition and NHS Trust participation budgets, with some overlap in the 'Communicating Effectively with Patients and Families' category positioning of PEN.
• BMJ Awards: Long-running UK healthcare awards programme run by the BMJ Group, recognising clinical and quality improvement excellence. Targets the same NHS Trust and clinician audience as PEN but with a more clinical/medical specialty tilt.

Emerging players

• Patient Experience Journal: Open-access academic journal dedicated to patient experience research and practice. Overlaps with PEN's evidence-spreading mission but operates as a scholarly publication rather than a community/events-driven network.

Others

• CQC (Care Quality Commission): England's independent regulator of health and adult social care. Not a direct competitor, but its inspections, ratings, and reporting frameworks shape the demand environment for PEN's patient experience recognition and shared learning offerings.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/patient-experience-network

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

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 Patient Experience Network