DHCW Supplier Away Day: Aligning for Cloud transition success

17 December 2025

DHCW held a supplier day earlier this month to ensure a shared understanding of the DHCW Cloud Transition Programme (CTP), and alignment on the next phase of the programme.

The day was filled with collaboration, clear direction, and a shared collective commitment to delivering a successful cloud transition.

Setting the Scene

The day opened with a warm welcome from Sarah Murphy, Head of the Cloud Transition Programme, who emphasised the importance of collaboration. Sam Lloyd, Executive Director of Operations at DHCW, reinforced that the CTP is a key strategic enabler for DHCW’s future, fully backed by executive leadership and that the next 3–6 months will see the shift from planning to implementation, with early application migrations scheduled for February–March 2026.

Programme overview & technical deep dive

Carwyn Lloyd Jones, Chief Cloud Officer, provided a comprehensive overview of the current landscape and the strategic direction. Key points included:

Migration of approximately 90 services from 1,600 servers to the cloud, with a focus on minimal customer impact.
Emphasis on cloud-first, multi-cloud strategy, security by design, operational agility, and cost transparency.
Environmental benefits, including a targeted 10% reduction in carbon footprint by 2027/28.

Technical sessions led by Jason Shaw and Donald Kennedy detailed the high-level and low-level design principles for both Azure and Google Cloud platforms, covering network architecture, security, resilience, and unified monitoring.

DHCW team perspectives

Rob Murray and Helen Clayton offered an honest look at both the challenges and aspirations facing their teams as part of the Cloud Transition Programme. They shared their optimism for the programme. Rob, Senior Product Specialist in hospital pharmacy, recognised the complexities of moving from mixed legacy systems but is confident that a smooth transition will deliver a stable platform, ease workloads, and enable staff to develop new skills, ultimately improving patient care.

Helen, Service Owner for demographics and core databases, highlighted the opportunities to strengthen clinical systems, raise data standards, and upskill teams, emphasising the positive impact of strong partner support throughout this journey.

Partner contributions

Supplier partners include TPX Impact, Microsoft, KPMG, Trustmarque, Channel 3, and Capacitas who presented their commitments, deliverables, and key contacts. Highlights included:

TPX Impact: Leading on low-level design and infrastructure build.
Trustmarque: Developing the Cloud transition test strategy and supporting migration assurance.
KPMG: Delivering cyber security design and readiness.
Microsoft: Providing migration resources, technical support, and training.

Workstream workshops

Attendees participated in interactive workshops, grouped by workstream (programme, infrastructure, migration, organisational change, security). These sessions were focused on delivering the objectives from the day and creating a clear aligned action plan.

Key Outcomes

Unified Vision: All partners and teams now share a clear understanding of the CTP’s goals and the critical role each plays in delivering secure, scalable, and innovative cloud services.
Actionable Roadmap: Immediate priorities and dependencies for the next 3–6 months are agreed, with clear action owners and deadlines.
Skills & Support: Training needs and a skills gap analysis are underway, ensuring our teams are ready for the transition.
Technical Readiness: Infrastructure and security designs are progressing, with the first wave of migrations targeted for early 2026.
Partner Commitment: Our suppliers; TPX Impact, Google, Microsoft, KPMG, Trustmarque, Channel 3, and Capacitas, are actively engaged, each bringing specialist expertise to accelerate delivery.

Next Steps

Deliver Wave 1 Migrations: Focus on technical readiness, testing, and staff engagement to ensure a smooth transition.
Strengthen Collaboration: Continue regular engagement and open communication across all workstreams.
Upskill teams: Roll out targeted training and support to empower staff for new ways of working.
Monitor progress: Track milestones and quickly address any blockers to keep momentum high.

Closing Remarks

Carwyn Lloyd Jones closed the day by thanking all participants for their contributions and reaffirming the collective commitment to delivering a successful cloud transition for NHS Wales.