Health Innovation North West Coast’s fuel poverty project has been shortlisted for an HSJ Award.
The awards recognise an outstanding contribution to healthcare and lead to a place at the prestigious awards ceremony later this year.
The project – full title: Targeting Fuel Poverty to Improve Respiratory Outcomes – is being delivered in partnership with NHS Cheshire and Merseyside ICB.
It has been shortlisted in the Data-driven Transformation category and uses linked population health data to identify respiratory patients most at risk from fuel poverty.
It delivers targeted, neighbourhood-based support in Cheshire and Merseyside and has been linked to a 9.8 per cent reduction in GP appointments.
The awards organisers received more than 1,300 entries and 231 projects and individuals have reached the final shortlist. The organisers say the high volume and exceptional quality of applications showcases the ‘impressive levels of innovation and care continually being developed in the UK’s healthcare networks.’
Rhiannon Clarke, Senior Programme Manager and lead for the project at Health Innovation North West Coast, said: “We are delighted to be shortlisted. It is a huge boost and recognises all the hard work and commitment from all the partners involved.
“The competition was very tough with an unprecedented volume of entries from so many other equally deserving trusts and individuals.
“It’s very encouraging to get this far and we are so proud to have the opportunity to share our success with colleagues from across the entire sector, as well as showcasing everything we’ve learnt through implementing our project.”
The project uses the CIPHA platform to connect clinical, deprivation and housing intelligence, and turns data into action by helping local teams target support where it is most needed. By integrating care with existing housing, energy and welfare services, it addresses a key driver of health inequalities without creating new services.
More than 1,600 patients have been supported, and a recent evaluation demonstrated a reduction in primary care use alongside scalable SMS outreach. The project uses a tiered model that supports system-wide spread.
HSJ editor Alastair McLellan said: “It always gives me great pleasure to congratulate our finalists at this stage of the judging process, and this year is no exception as we acknowledge Health Innovation North West Coast and NHS Cheshire and Merseyside ICB for being shortlisted.
“However, it’s always important to remember that the HSJ Awards are not just a celebration of success stories but also a platform to shape the future of the NHS.
“We can’t wait to welcome our finalists to the awards ceremony in November and to recognise and applaud such impressive achievements across the sector. Huge thanks also go to our headline partner, Lloyds Clinical, who share our mission of driving the standard of healthcare excellence and creating better patient experiences.”
The selected winners will be announced during the awards ceremony at Evolution London on 19 November.
The event reflects the HSJ Awards’ enduring ethos of “sharing best practice, improving patient outcomes and innovating drivers of better service” and will also serve as a timely and well-deserved thank you to the sector.
The judging panel is made up of a diverse range of highly influential figures from the healthcare community, as well as respected board-level executives from NHS trusts.
The full list of nominees for the 2026 HSJ awards is at https://awards.hsj.co.uk/shortlist-2026
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