Open Referral UK has entered a new chapter and it started with bringing people back together.
In April 2026, iStandUK took on the secretariat for Open Referral UK (ORUK), building on the work previously led by MHCLG and supported by TPXimpact. Since then, our focus has been on connecting to the community, sustaining momentum, and setting a clear direction for what comes next.
This journey took an important step forward with the latest Steering Group meeting, held on 26 May 2026. It was the first under the Secretariat of iStandUK, and the first meeting since March 2025. The meeting brought together leaders from across government, the NHS, standards bodies, and the voluntary sector around a clear shared purpose: improving how service information is structured, shared and used.
At its core, the Steering Group’s aim is to increase the sharing of high-quality services data between local government and the wider public sector, and where possible with VCFSE organisations. This includes making it easier for local government to re-use services data created elsewhere, and improving the quality and consistency of information so it can be reliably used for referrals across different sectors.
Priorities and Direction
Discussions focused on how Open Referral UK can turn ambition into practical progress: supporting organisations to adopt the standard, improving tools and guidance, and demonstrating real-world value through place-based pilots.
The Steering Group aligned on a set of priorities for the iStandUK ORUK team to build momentum, including:
- Strengthening and evolving the ORUK standard
- Making adoption easier through better tools, training and playbooks
- Supporting pilots in Greater Manchester, and Bournemouth, Christchurch and Poole
- Working more closely with suppliers and partners across the ecosystem
- Exploring new opportunities, including AI-enabled service discovery
Alongside this, members revisited the broader vision: enabling better service discovery, more connected systems, and improved outcomes for people and communities. There was also a strong emphasis on growing the community particularly by bringing in more voices from the technology sector and VCFSE organisations.
As ORUK moves forward, the role of the Steering Group is evolving too. There is a shift towards a stronger stewardship role: helping guide the standard’s development, supporting adoption, and thinking long-term about sustainability and governance. Work is already underway to update the Group’s terms of reference to reflect this.
Find out more
If you’d like to understand more about the discussions, priorities and next steps, you can find the Q1 2026 Steering Group minutes on the Open Referral UK website.
To stay up to date with progress, opportunities to get involved, and future Steering Group activity, you can also join the ORUK mailing list. This is the best way to hear about upcoming sessions, pilots, and ways to contribute to the growing Open Referral UK community.