Aya Healthcare acquires UK-based Locum’s Nest to accelerate digital NHS workforce platform integration

Aya Healthcare, the United States’ largest healthcare staffing and talent software provider, has acquired Locum’s Nest, a leading UK-based digital workforce management platform built for the National Health Service (NHS). The cross-border acquisition aims to unite mobile-enabled shift scheduling technologies with scalable float pool management, targeting expanded clinician access, labor cost optimization, and AI-integrated deployment across public health systems.

San Diego-headquartered Aya Healthcare confirmed the acquisition in June 2025 as part of its broader international expansion strategy. Locum’s Nest, established in 2016 by NHS physicians Dr. Nicholas Andreou and Dr. Ahmed Shahrabani, has grown into a trusted partner for multiple NHS Trusts, streamlining workforce coordination through digital-first shift booking, float pools, and inter-hospital capacity management.

The transaction, which remains undisclosed in financial terms, brings together two high-growth technology platforms designed to modernize contingent staffing for clinicians and hospital systems. Aya Healthcare, privately held, operates the largest digital staffing marketplace in the U.S., with services spanning travel nursing, per diem work, allied health professionals, interim leadership, and permanent recruitment.

How does the Aya Healthcare acquisition of Locum’s Nest reshape NHS staffing efficiency through digital float pool platforms?

Aya Healthcare’s acquisition of Locum’s Nest is designed to transform the economics and responsiveness of NHS shift staffing by expanding the UK firm’s digital float pool infrastructure across more Trusts and hospital networks. Locum’s Nest pioneered NHS-wide shift-matching tools through mobile applications and was the first platform to build regionally managed float pools across hospitals.

The float pool approach centralizes clinician availability across networks, allowing institutions to reduce their reliance on expensive agency labor and instead pull from a flexible, shared internal workforce. The technology also supports multi-hospital scheduling visibility, transparent pay and availability terms, and secure credentialing—all integrated through a clinician-facing mobile interface.

According to Aya Healthcare CEO Emily Hazen, the integration of Locum’s Nest represents more than market expansion. “It’s an alignment of mission and scale,” she said. “We’re joining forces with an NHS-proven solution that has digitized staffing with compassion, agility, and measurable outcomes.”

What are the strategic advantages Aya Healthcare gains by entering the UK health workforce technology space?

For Aya Healthcare, the deal enables entry into one of the world’s largest public healthcare systems—estimated at over £180 billion in annual spending—via a well-established technology brand. Locum’s Nest already services NHS Trusts with a reputational footprint for reducing rota gaps, improving shift fill rates, and empowering doctors to choose assignments that suit their schedules and wellness needs.

Aya’s expansion into the UK comes amid growing institutional focus on addressing healthcare labor shortages through scalable, digitally-driven platforms. The NHS has increasingly turned to float pools, mobile shift matching, and collaborative workforce planning as alternatives to traditional recruitment agencies.

Aya Healthcare operates a similar technology-led model in the U.S., with AI-enabled staffing platforms and predictive analytics designed to optimize labor supply across acute, post-acute, and outpatient settings. The integration will enable best-practice sharing between the U.S. and UK arms of the combined business.

Institutional investors tracking healthtech convergence view the deal as part of a broader shift toward regional platform consolidations, where established operators partner with local digital innovators to enter tightly regulated markets.

What is the outlook for Locum’s Nest under Aya Healthcare’s ownership within the NHS workforce system?

Locum’s Nest will continue operating under its existing brand and leadership team while gaining access to Aya’s extensive operational infrastructure, software development capabilities, and global resources. Both co-founders, Dr. Andreou and Dr. Shahrabani, emphasized their commitment to maintaining Locum’s NHS-first ethos.

“This partnership allows us to amplify everything we’ve built—faster innovation, national expansion, and deeper support for NHS clinicians—without compromising our values,” said Dr. Shahrabani.

Locum’s Nest currently supports workforce deployment across over 50 NHS Trusts, managing shift coordination for thousands of doctors. The integration with Aya Healthcare will allow the platform to expand its regional float pool model, potentially offering real-time shift access across England, Scotland, and Wales with optimized clinician engagement algorithms.

The NHS has identified workforce resilience, reduction of locum dependency, and cost-efficient shift fulfillment as top priorities under the 2023–2026 NHS Long Term Workforce Plan. The acquisition aligns with these policy goals and could accelerate digital adoption under NHS England’s transformation charter.

How are institutional stakeholders and analysts interpreting Aya Healthcare’s strategic positioning through this UK expansion?

Institutional sentiment toward Aya Healthcare’s move has generally been favorable, with analysts noting the timing aligns with heightened NHS pressure to resolve staffing gaps without escalating costs. By backing a proven NHS-native solution, Aya avoids regulatory pitfalls and gains traction in an environment increasingly favoring software-as-a-service over manual scheduling methods.

Analysts view Aya Healthcare’s entry into the UK as a longer-term bid to position itself as a transatlantic healthcare staffing platform capable of serving both public and private systems through unified, AI-enabled workforce tools.

From a competitive perspective, the UK digital staffing ecosystem includes rivals such as Patchwork Health and NHS Bank Staff systems, but Locum’s Nest is distinguished by its multi-region float pools and deep physician engagement metrics.

Investor interest in cross-border healthtech scale-ups has grown in recent years, with digital platforms like Florence, Lantum, and Medely attracting significant VC and private equity attention. Aya’s strategic M&A approach may signal a trend where larger U.S. or global entities seek to integrate specialized regional tools that meet local care standards.

What broader industry trends does the Aya–Locum’s Nest acquisition reflect in healthcare workforce transformation?

The deal reflects several accelerating macro-trends in healthcare operations:

First, clinician burnout and administrative overload have created an urgent demand for scheduling autonomy, transparent rostering, and workload alignment—all of which mobile staffing platforms aim to address.

Second, public and private payors are both under pressure to reduce overreliance on high-cost agency staffing models. Digital float pools and internal labor marketplaces offer a cost-controlled alternative.

Third, health systems globally are exploring interoperability of labor platforms across regions—Locum’s Nest has shown that multi-hospital float management is possible with the right governance and data transparency.

Aya’s AI capabilities and deep investment in software provide a multiplier effect to Locum’s Nest’s local credibility and regulatory understanding. Together, they offer a template for how digital labor marketplaces can be scaled sustainably within nationalized care systems.

What are the long-term goals and global roadmap following this cross-border acquisition?

The immediate post-acquisition roadmap includes accelerating Locum’s Nest’s national coverage across the NHS, enhancing clinician onboarding pathways, and investing in data science tools to support predictive scheduling and shift optimization.

Over time, Aya Healthcare may also look to harmonize its U.S. and UK platforms to offer seamless talent movement between healthcare systems, pending credentialing regulations. Cross-border interoperability remains a longer-term goal.

Aya’s workforce solutions already span more than 6,000 clients across the U.S., and the company employs over 6,000 professionals globally. With this deal, it extends its footprint to the UK’s critical public health infrastructure, setting the stage for further expansion in other international healthcare markets.

For now, both parties emphasize continuity, innovation, and an unwavering focus on clinician-first design as they begin their joint mission to support healthcare systems facing unprecedented labor challenges.