Case Study: NHS Shared Business Services achieves paperless, cost-saving invoicing with Tradeshift

How NHS SBS Went Digital and Never Looked Back

NHS Shared Business Services (NHS SBS) supports hundreds of UK healthcare organizations but was overwhelmed by paper — about 30,000 inbound invoices daily from 175,000 suppliers — and previous e-invoicing efforts had low adoption. They needed automation, real-time invoice visibility, and procurement insights to cut costs and improve supplier experience.

NHS SBS adopted Tradeshift’s free-for-supplier platform with flexible onboarding and automated invoice validation. The change eliminated up to 14 million pieces of paper a year, processed 2.5 million invoices since go-live (around 90k/month), grew e-invoicing to ~25k/month in 17 months, and produced a 100% drop in invoice-status calls. The platform also unlocked procurement visibility, faster processing times, happier suppliers, and a 170% year‑over‑year increase in invoice volume after adding 51 suppliers.

NHS Shared Business Services

Gavin Turner

Head of F&A Operations and Quality position