Access to Health Records (AHR) - Primary Care Support England

Access to Health Records (AHR) Request

PCSE stores NHS GP medical records for individuals who have passed away.

If you are looking to make an Access to Health Records request it must comply with the Access to Health Records Act 1990 (AHRA) and can take up to 40 days to process.

Primary Care Support England can only provide a copy of GP health records. Other parts of a patient’s health record may be held by hospitals, community or mental health trusts, as well as previous GP practices. We cannot provide access to these records, and you will need to apply separately to another health organisation.

Watch our video which takes you through the process of submitting an Access to Health records request, and tells you exactly what information you need to provide, such as ID and documentation.

To access the form, visit the Contact Us page on the website and select Subject Access Request as the category of your enquiry and Subject Access Request (Medical Records) as the type of enquiry. Then follow these simple steps:

Select the capacity in which you’re submitting the request
Tell us if your request is regarding a deceased person
Answer Yes, and you will be taken to the Access Health Request form
Complete the form and upload the supporting documentation
Submit your application

What happens next?

We will:

Process your application and order the medical record from our offsite storage facility
An NHS England Health Professional will review the request and medical record in line with the Data Protection Act 2018 (DPA)
If the Health Professional confirms that the records can be released, a copy of the record will be sent to you electronically by secure email
Your request will be complete

You can find out more about access NHS England encrypted emails here.

Consent to email your completed request

In agreement with NHS England, PCSE is now able to complete your request via secure email. This is also the fastest way to make a request for access to medical records.

Please note: by submitting your AHR or SAR request online, you are consenting to receive any communication/records via secure email. For guidance on how to access these emails, please click the tile below.