Home user programme
If you are an NHS employee, you are eligible to participate in the Home Use Programme. It enables eligible employees of the NHS to get a licensed copy of most Microsoft Office desktop applications to install and use on a home computer as part of the benefits entitlement to staff in the Microsoft Enterprise Agreement.
As of March 2007, as an NHS employee, you are now entitled to order a copy of Microsoft Office 2007 Enterprise Edition as part of this agreement. Apple users please note that you are able to order a copy of Office 2008 for Mac under this scheme, just tick the appropriate section when ordering.
This is not a different scheme to that which many have already taken advantage of, but an online mechanism to ensure that all NHS staff who are interested in taking advantage of the offer can get access simply and effectively. If you have already taken advantage of the scheme, please pass this url to your colleagues.
Eligible employees can order online at a dedicated Microsoft HUP web site. In order to access this web site, your employees must use the unique programme code provided for your organisation.
There is a certain amount of procedure to be followed to authenticate your access, but the process, we hope, is fairly straightforward.
Apply for the Home User Programme
Enter your NHS email address to get the code you need to order your software – you will then be taken to a dedicated website to complete your order online. On entering your NHS email address in order to retrieve your Programme Code, you may find that it is not recognised. In these cases you can send us your email for us to enter it manually into our database. This process will take seven working days to be completed, after which you can re-enter your NHS email address again and gain access to your Programme Code.
Whilst you will be re-directed you may wish to make a note of your code should you need to order at a later time.
Note: this programme code is assigned to your organisation for your sole use in accessing this site. You may not share this number with anyone outside your organisation.
On completion of the next steps an automatic email will be sent to the address you have supplied – we have noticed that on very rare occasions that email is misplaced due to entering the wrong address or sometimes gets caught in either your Trust's or personal Inbox junk or spam email filters. Please do check if the email does not arrive within 24 hours of submission to the site.
Place your order on-line and it will be shipped to the location you have chosen. Please note that a fulfilment fee will be charged to cover packaging, shipping and handling costs.
Details about the Programme
Full terms and conditions are available on subsequent pages as part of the standard ordering process.
Some commonly asked questions:
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Why do I need an nhs.uk / nhs.net address – can I not use my personal email address?
Your NHS email address provides both the NHS Contracting party; NHS Connecting for Health and Microsoft the necessary authentication that demonstrates you are an eligible user.
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What software can I order?
This Programme is designed to provide you with a copy of Microsoft Office 2007 or Mac Office 2008 for your home use.
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How much does it cost?
The software license itself is free, however there is a fee charged to cover packaging and handling costs, of approximately eighteen pounds.
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How are version upgrades handled under HUP?
Purchases under the HUP scheme are limited to a single copy of each version per email address. As such, employees who purchased the HUP media for the legacy versions of Office XP or Office 2003 can now also purchase the latest version of Microsoft Office 2007. Likewise, employees who purchased the HUP media for Mac Office 2004 can now also purchase the latest copy of Mac Office 2008.
However this does not give employees the right to run both versions – the right to use the earlier version ends when employees then use the newer version.
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Who do I contact if I have a problem?
If you cannot access the site, or have any issues with ordering or fulfilment after receiving your programme code please email hupvalue@msdirectservices.com
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How many copies can I order? / I have already ordered a copy and require another or updated copy.
You are entitled to order one copy of Office for your use. No further orders can be made.
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Who do I contact if I my email address is not recognised, or if I have any further questions?
Please email nhsea@microsoft.com
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How do I get support for my copy of Office?
The same way as you would for any retail copy – please visit support.microsoft.com