---
title: "Dragon Medical 1 Licences"
ocid: "ocds-h6vhtk-06e734"
canonical_url: "https://d3tenders.com/contract/?ocid=ocds-h6vhtk-06e734"
markdown_url: "https://d3tenders.com/contract/ocds-h6vhtk-06e734.md"
json_url: "https://d3tenders.com/contract/ocds-h6vhtk-06e734.json"
source: "Find A Tender Service"
current_stage: "Award"
buyer: "Imperial College Healthcare NHS Trust"
published: "2026-08-19"
---

# Dragon Medical 1 Licences

Buyer: Imperial College Healthcare NHS Trust  
Current stage: Award  
OCID: ocds-h6vhtk-06e734

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[Download OCDS JSON](https://d3tenders.com/contract/ocds-h6vhtk-06e734.json)

## Summary

Imperial College Healthcare NHS Trust procured Dragon Medical 1 licences as a specialist medical voice-recognition and automated transcription service. The requirement supports pathology dissection and reporting workflows, using recognition trained for medical and pathology vocabulary rather than standard general-purpose speech recognition. Its purpose is to improve efficient, streamlined reporting and reduce transcription errors that could create patient-safety risks. The service is for the Trust’s pathology operations in London. The procurement is categorised as a service, with the technical classification describing licence management software development services. The requirement relates to the North West London Pathology laboratory information management system (NWLP LIMS), within which the selected supplier’s solution is already integrated.

The procurement is complete and has been awarded through a direct award. Freedom of Speech Limited was selected because it was identified as the only supplier already integrated with the NWLP LIMS. The award covers one lot and is suitable for small and medium-sized enterprises. The awarded value is £210,600 excluding VAT, or £252,720 including VAT, and the contract period runs from 1 September 2026 to 31 August 2029. The procurement is above the relevant threshold. A contract signature milestone was scheduled for 25 August 2026. The award is recorded against Dragon Medical 1 licences, with the evaluation route based on single-supplier technical reasons rather than a competitive tender.

This award demonstrates demand from an NHS pathology service for specialised speech-recognition licences that work with medical and pathology terminology and support safe clinical reporting. A credible future competitor would need a product capable of accurate automated transcription in dissection and reporting environments, alongside demonstrable understanding of the consequences of transcription errors for patient safety. Integration with the relevant laboratory information management system is central: suppliers would need the technical capability to connect with NWLP LIMS or a clear route to achieving equivalent integration. The incumbent’s existing integration was decisive, so interoperability, implementation capability and reliable licence management would be important differentiators when this requirement is next tested.

## Notice

Automated transcription is an important part of an efficient and streamlined workflow in dissection and reporting. The voice recognition is not standard voice recognition, it is specialised to medical vocabulary but also specifically to Pathology vocabulary. This is a critical patient safety consideration as transcription errors could lead to incorrect reports and subsequent patient harm.

### Procurement Information

Freedom of Speech is the only supplier already integrated within the NWLP LIMS

## Key Details

| Field | Value |
| --- | --- |
| Publication source | Find A Tender Service |
| Latest notice | https://www.find-tender.service.gov.uk/Notice/078834-2026 |
| Notice type | UK5 - Transparency Notice |
| Procurement type | Standard |
| Procurement category | Services |
| Procurement method | Direct |
| Procurement method details | Direct award |
| Tender suitability | SME |
| Awardee scale | SME |
| All stages | Award |

## Dates

| Field | Value |
| --- | --- |
| Publication date | 19 Aug 2026 |
| Submission deadline | Not specified |
| Future notice date | Not specified |
| Award date | 19 Aug 2026 |
| Contract period | 1 Sep 2026 - 31 Aug 2029 |
| Recurrence | Not specified |

## Values

| Field | Value |
| --- | --- |
| Tender value | Not specified |
| Lots value | Not specified |
| Awards value | £210,600 |
| Contracts value | Not specified |

## Status

| Field | Value |
| --- | --- |
| Tender status | Complete |
| Lots status | Complete |
| Awards status | Pending |
| Contracts status | Not specified |

## Buyer

| Field | Value |
| --- | --- |
| Main buyer | Imperial College Healthcare NHS Trust |
| Locality | LONDON |
| Postcode area | West London |
| Postcode | W2 1NY |
| Country | England |
| ITL 1 | TLI London |
| ITL 2 | TLI3 Inner London - West |
| ITL 3 | TLI35 Westminster and City of London |
| Local authority | Westminster |
| Electoral ward | Hyde Park |
| Westminster constituency | Cities of London and Westminster |
| Delivery location | Not specified |

## Supplier

| Field | Value |
| --- | --- |
| Number of suppliers | 1 |
| Supplier names | FREEDOM OF SPEECH LIMITED |

## CPV Codes

### Divisions

- 72 - IT services: consulting, software development, Internet and support

### Codes

- 72212218 - License management software development services

## Release History

- 19 Aug 2026 at 10:27 - Award - UK5 - Transparency Notice - https://www.find-tender.service.gov.uk/Notice/078834-2026

## Documents

- https://www.find-tender.service.gov.uk/Notice/078834-2026
  19th August 2026 - Transparency notice on Find a Tender

## Notice URLs

- https://www.imperial.nhs.uk
- https://www.legislation.gov.uk/ukpga/2023/54/contents

## Provenance

This Markdown file is an alternate public rendering of the D3 Tenders contract record. The canonical page is https://d3tenders.com/contract/?ocid=ocds-h6vhtk-06e734. The underlying structured data is available as OCDS JSON at https://d3tenders.com/contract/ocds-h6vhtk-06e734.json.
