Action needed now: do not book routine blood tests for the week commencing Monday 28 September 2026. The lab is switching to a new system and routine phlebotomy is paused that week.
The Northern Care Alliance (NCA) is upgrading its Pathology Laboratory Information Management System (LIMS) to WinPath Enterprise. It goes fully live for Salford and Wigan on Monday 28 September 2026 — Bury, Rochdale and Oldham went live earlier this year. During the move, the laboratory needs to focus on urgent work only.
| Slot type | Status w/c 28 Sep |
|---|---|
| Phlebotomy clinics | Removed / cancelled |
| HCA / blood clinics | Blocked — appointments only for urgent testing; routine bookings must be rearranged |
| LTC / Hypertension slots | Remain open — patients should have had blood/urine testing done before this appointment |
Important: if a patient attends an LTC/hypertension appointment and testing has not been carried out, they will need to rebook — testing cannot be carried out during this period.
General queries about the new LIMS: LIMS@nca.nhs.uk (NCA). Internal queries: ask Ebony or the management team.
Source: NCA communication (Aug/Sep 2026); Pennygate internal protocol email from Ebony Blakemore, 25 Aug 2026. Last updated: 2 September 2026.