Microsoft Outage Disrupts NHS, Police and Schools Across the UK

A major Microsoft service disruption has caused widespread problems across the United Kingdom, affecting hospitals, GP practices, police forces, schools and universities.

The disruption began late Thursday and continued into Friday, leaving thousands of users unable to access key Microsoft services, particularly Outlook email and other workplace systems. The incident has also created difficulties for organisations that rely heavily on Microsoft's cloud-based tools for daily operations.

NHS Services Face Serious Disruption

Healthcare organisations have been among the most affected. NHS employees in several parts of the country reported problems accessing email and other IT systems needed for routine work.

Some patients were warned that prescription services could take longer than usual because pharmacies and GP practices were experiencing communication problems. Pharmacy organisations also said the disruption was making it harder to exchange information with medical practices.

Despite the widespread technical problems, emergency and life-threatening medical calls were reported to be continuing without major interruption.

Some NHS staff were still able to use Microsoft Teams through their mobile phones, although meetings and other activities were disrupted.

Police Forces Also Affected

Several UK police forces reported difficulties with systems connected to Microsoft's services. The affected organisations included police forces in London, Northamptonshire, Hertfordshire, South Wales, Dyfed-Powys and Dorset.

The disruption also reached the UK parliamentary network, where some users experienced problems with Microsoft email services.

Government officials said technical teams were working alongside Microsoft to understand the scale of the problem and help restore normal operations.

Schools and Universities Experience Email Problems

Educational institutions were also caught up in the outage. Some schools and universities were unable to access email services, creating difficulties for staff and students who depend on Microsoft's platforms for communication and daily activities.

The disruption highlighted how heavily many public institutions now rely on a relatively small number of technology platforms.

Microsoft Says Cyberattack Is Not Suspected

Microsoft executive Charles Lamanna said there was no indication that the outage had been caused by a cyberattack.

The company later reported early signs that its services were beginning to stabilise, although problems continued for some users.

Microsoft's 365 ecosystem includes widely used services such as Outlook and Teams, meaning an interruption can quickly affect organisations across different sectors.

Government Calls for Greater Technology Resilience

The incident has renewed concerns about the UK's dependence on large technology providers.

Defence readiness and industry minister Luke Pollard said government engineers were working with Microsoft and suggested that the outage demonstrated the importance of building greater resilience into critical technology systems.

As organisations increasingly depend on cloud services for communication, healthcare, education and public administration, even a temporary technical failure can have consequences across multiple sectors.

The full impact of the Microsoft outage is still being assessed as engineers continue efforts to restore affected services.