Rotherham NHS Cuts IT Call Volumes by 28% Using an Autonomous Agent

The Rotherham NHS Foundation Trust took decisive action to modernise its overstretched IT Service Desk. By choosing to implement an Autonomous Agent built using our AI-powered contact centre solution, Liberty Converse, the Trust:

1. Achieved a staggering 28% reduction in inbound calls
2. Unlocked major efficiency savings across the Trust
3. Showcased how NHS digital transformation, AI automation and autonomous agent technology reduces operational pressure to do more with less.

“The structured approach that Netcall guided us in made all the difference to our virtual assistant project. By focusing on our top ten issues first, we could see real results quickly. The feedback from our team and users is extremely positive. The ongoing support is invaluable in continuing to optimise the virtual assistant.”

Christine Hazlehurst

Head of IT Service Management and Support Services, The Rotherham NHS Foundation Trust

The challenge: Moving from phone to AI-powered digital helpdesk

Rotherham IT Helpdesk faced increasing call volumes but had no capacity to expand their team’s headcount – a challenge familiar across the NHS.  Even with self-service and email channels in place, most users still picked up the phone – partly out of habit and because of the IT team’s supportive, approachable culture, even when overwhelmed.

Rotherham recognised that by modernising digital support channels and reducing reliance on phone-based help, they could free their IT professionals to focus on more complex and valuable issues. Their internal analysis showed that automating their top call drivers could reduce inbound calls by 30–40%.

Rather than accept increasing pressure, Rotherham made the strategic decision to embrace AI-powered automation.

The solution: AI-powered Autonomous Agent for decision making and task completion

To achieve their vision of a modern, efficient helpdesk, the Trust selected our Agentic AI capabilities within Liberty Converse, to implement a fully Autonomous Agent to resolve common IT issues quickly. It can handle complex or unclear queries with far more precision than a standard rules-based virtual assistant.

Autonomous Agents automate, goal-driven workflows and complete tasks or resolve issues. These Agents understand intent, make decisions and take action across multiple systems.

At Rotherham, it delivers an effective, automated first line support experience:

1. Understands the staff member’s IT problem. Using generative AI natural language understanding, it interprets intent even when described informally.
2. Independently searches ITSM and internal systems. The agent retrieves relevant fixes, configuration info or troubleshooting steps without any team intervention.
3. Delivers the correct solution instantly. Staff members receive consistent, accurate guidance aligned to the Trust’s IT processes.
4. Automatically raises a fully populated ITSM case. If further support is needed, the agent generates a complete ticket with correct categorisation and context, ready for IT to action.

The Autonomous Agent improves consistency, accuracy and speed, while diverting significant call volume away from the IT Service Desk. Reducing pressure on staff while improving response times and resolution quality.

“Using Liberty Converse’s Virtual Agent reporting, we run live observe–learn–improve cycles on real staff interactions. By analysing conversations as they happen, we surface gaps missed in testing, unmet intents, unexpected pathways, ambiguous language and tune journeys within minutes, not release cycles. This rapid feedback loop ensures our virtual assistant is continuously refined – improving accuracy, coverage and user experience every day.”

James Rawlinson

Director of Health Informatics, The Rotherham NHS Foundation Trust

The results: Measurable impact, rapid ROI