Lateral flow device (LFD) dispatches: explanatory text
Updated 1 September 2023
Applies to England
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Definition of dispatches
The dispatch figures refer to the handover and transit of lateral flow device (LFD) kit orders from UKHSA. It measures the volume of LFD kits that are distributed by supply and logistics networks to individual end users or organisations which are reported by the operational channel.
Volumes reported in this publication are the total number of tests provided, and do not reference the product or number of packs. Tests are included in the months distributed. Test volumes are for England distribution only.
The process of dispatches
Orders for LFD kits are generated on the Sales Force system in receipt of orders placed by organisations. These orders are vetted by the respective use case teams to validate the request as well as to prevent organisations from being in an overstocked position. Orders that are received by the deadline are combined to create a primary dispatch file.
Once the dispatch plan has been finalised, the warehouse ships directly to the individual organisations, apart from schools, pharmacies and home channels.
For the pharmacy channel, wholesalers place orders according to the demand from the pharmacy network. These orders are shipped in bulk to the wholesaler and are then shipped out in smaller orders to the pharmacies network according to the demand of citizen collection of tests at pharmacies.
The home channels are individual orders that are placed on the GOV.UK portal and which are shipped from the central warehouse directly to consumers.
Orders which are received by the school’s use case are dispatched directly to schools by the courier service.
Technical methodology
The dispatch report is based on validated data processes which create a master dispatch file. This consists of various data inputs in the pipeline which originate from data extracted from data repositories, delivery trackers and third-party primary dispatch schedules.
In the instances where dispatches are recorded to the inventory warehouse, the dispatch pipeline uses delivery trackers to provide a granular view of the dispatches’ final destinations. This ensures that we have more accurate figures for the total quantity dispatched to regions and nations.
These data sources are collated and then processed by applying processing rules to support the categorisation of dispatch records to the correct delivery channel, use case, test type (self or assisted tests), product and activity for the devolved administrations. The output of this process is validated and signed off before the dispatch volumes are released for publication.