Healthy deal as Leicestershire locum firm is sold
Network Locum, the workplace management software that helps NHS hospitals and GP surgeries find available clinical staff, has made its first acquisition by buying RLocums.
Leicester-based RLocums is the number two online marketplace for locum doctors and employers to find each other. It operates across the East Midlands and has about 3,000 doctors on its register.
Pulling Network Locum and RLocums together is the first step in Network Locum’s plans to create a nationwide staffing platform that will help NHS hospitals and GP practices find qualified staff, without resorting to expensive locum agencies. NHS spending on stand-in doctors reached £2.5bn last year, despite Government efforts to impose caps on pay rates for locums.
Network Locum’s model allows GP practices and hospitals to deal directly with locums, choosing what rate they pay and dramatically reducing their spending on locums. The staffing software can help the NHS reduce the vast amount it is spending on finding, booking and paying stand-in staff each week, money which can then be redirected to front-line services.
The deal will increase the total user base and give the combined company a big presence in the East Midlands, a region with a population of 4.5 million people. Network Locums is paying an undisclosed sum for RLocums, which will continue to operate under its own name, with its own business model and website.
As part of its effort to build a national online community of locums, the companies will invest more money in GP education and networking events in London, Manchester, Birmingham and the East Midlands. Network Locums will also continue to add to its online resources for clinicians.
Melissa Morris, founder of Network Locum, said: “RLocums is a great company which is a natural fit with our business. Steve and Bob Leung will continue to act as advisors to the larger company. I am really excited about this first step in our mission to create a network of GP locums across the whole of England and Wales that offers the possibility of revolutionising the way the NHS matches locums to available shifts.”
Bob Leung, founder of RLocums said: “We’re super excited about the merger because to our users, Network Locum and RLocums are two sides of the same coin. Both companies have their strengths. What’s really exciting is that by working together, we can share our expertise and ensure that our users get the very best of both worlds.”
Network Locum’s first deal comes less than a month since BGF Ventures led a £5.3m funding round for the technology start-up.
GP Dr Ishani Patel, said: “I am delighted that this union has happened. Both Network Locum and RLocums are the only innovators in this space and to see them come together and share the best of both is a great thing for GPs in the UK.”
Dr Susie Brennan, Network Locum’s governance adviser, added: “This is fantastic news for all GPs. The union between Network Locum and RLocums, who are both leading healthcare innovators, will mean even more opportunities for GPs to expand their careers and help the NHS deliver the best healthcare for patients”
Simon Calver, founding partner at BGF Ventures, said: “Network Locum has huge potential to change the way the NHS fills shift rostas and save the health service money at a time when its budgets are shrinking. In RLocums, Network Locum is joining forces with a business that has similar aims and the combined databases of employers and staff accelerates the company’s plan to build a network that is the first port of call for doctors and NHS managers alike.”
