Introduction

The National Cost Collection (NCC) for 2025 will be a year of essential change only for the Approved Costing Guidance. It will allow a settling period for the stakeholders involved in the NCC cycle, reducing the burden on costing practitioners and allowing best practice and use of the new data validation engine.

This summary of changes will help costing practitioners and other stakeholders implement the 2025 National Cost Collection. It does not replace a full and proper review of all the documentation.

It contains changes to the National Cost Collection guidance for acute, mental health, Talking Therapies (formerly IAPT) and community services only as there have been no material changes to the ambulance National Cost Collection. 

Supporting information including the minimum software requirements is on our FutureNHS workspace. You can access FutureNHS if you have an NHS email address or request access from the Costing Team on costing@england.nhs.uk.

If you have any comments or queries or concerns about this guidance or any of the Approved Costing Guidance, please contact the costing inbox.

Integrated extract specification

Mental health provider spells

A new field has been added to the mental health provider spells feed type in the extract specification called ‘mental health adjusted length of stay’. This is to capture the length of stay where a spell can be split between multiple currencies or commissioners and when a patient is on home leave. See Appendix 1.

Wheelchairs

Wheelchairs are now a mandated part of the collection. The currencies have been updated to reflect the payment currencies. The costing methodology has also been updated and the full cost should be submitted in the outpatient feed including equipment and maintenance. Equipment can no longer be submitted in the supplementary information feed. Wheelchair equipment costs can continue to be submitted in the aggregate feed where patient-level data is not available.

Currencies in development

Mental health provider spells, mental health care contacts, and community services care contact currencies have been updated and extended to Talking Therapies (IAPT). They are a mandated part of the collection for 2025. The data items from which the currencies are derived are also ‘required’ fields in the MHSDS. The Payment Development team will provide guidance on assigning currencies to activity. Where insufficient information is unavailable an unassigned/unspecified currency code can be submitted. See Appendix 2.

Service code

A new field has been added to the aggregate feed called service code and replaces activity treatment function code. Note treatment function code continues to be valid in admitted patient care and outpatient feeds. See Appendix 3.

Appendix 1

Appendix 2

Appendix 3