Providing NHS services
Information for GPs and other professionals involved in referrals
This page is for healthcare professionals. If you are an NHS patient looking to self-refer, please visit our NHS options page.
Dr Neil Stanley
Independent Sleep Expert
Good sleep is vital for good mental, physical and emotional health, yet most healthcare professionals receive very little training on it. Good sleep builds resilience, supports the immune system and helps us cope with stress. We must prioritise sleep. Sleepstation delivers clinically proven care pathways, and its CBTi programme can resolve chronic insomnia within 3–4 weeks.
Sleepstation’s NHS services
Sleepstation provides a fully supported digital care pathway for people with persistent sleep problems and insomnia symptoms. At its core is digital cognitive behavioural therapy for insomnia (CBTi) — the treatment recommended by NICE as the first-line intervention for insomnia.
The service gives clinicians a safe and practical way to refer patients for evidence-based treatment, in line with clinical guidance. Patients receive structured, professionally supported care designed to improve sleep patterns and quality, reduce insomnia symptoms, and promote long-term self-management.
Our sleep coaches and multidisciplinary team provide personalised support and guidance throughout, so patients are never left to manage alone.
Sleepstation improves sleep and quality of life for more than 80% of NHS patients who meaningfully engage with the programme. Our expertise in keeping people engaged is what makes the difference. In a recent study, patients using Sleepstation CBTi were three times more likely to stay engaged than those using fully-automated CBTi.
Why NHS commissioners choose Sleepstation:
- Evidence-based: aligned with NICE guidance, using CBTi as the recommended first-line treatment
- Clinically validated: more than a decade of real-world NHS use, with consistent evidence of efficacy and improved patient outcomes
- Regulated: UKCA-marked medical device (for UK use)
- Safe: few contraindications and a benign side-effect profile
- Practical and accessible: delivered online at scale, user-friendly and designed to fit into everyday life
- Supported: patients guided by trained sleep coaches, not left to self-manage
- Engaging: three times higher engagement than fully-automated CBTi apps
- Personalised: care tailored to each patient’s needs and progress.
Dr Moulin
GP at Amersham Vale Practice
I am grateful for your service. Especially for patients who are suffering from mild and moderate depression. Most of them have sleeping issues but waiting time for therapy is now between four and six months. Referring to Sleepstation helps them wait. This gives me an extra option to make patients feel less abandoned.
Sleepstation is embedded in most GP systems – it’s quick and easy to refer
If Sleepstation is not yet available in your systems, simply download the form and email it to us.
- Download and complete the form below
- Email the form to tnu-tr.sleepstation@nhs.net
We’ll handle everything else
Version 21: effective from December 2023
Sleepstation supports more NHS patients in a single month than the largest sleep clinics in England do in an entire year
This reach is possible because Sleepstation combines proven clinical methods with a digital-first model that is accessible anywhere. By removing traditional barriers such as geography, waiting lists and limited clinic capacity, we can deliver evidence-based insomnia care at scale, while maintaining the personal support that keeps patients engaged and achieving lasting results.
Make Sleepstation available in your area
Sleepstation is currently* available in 36 of the 41 Integrated Care System (ICS) regions of England, giving thousands of NHS patients timely access to support and clinically proven treatment for insomnia.
If Sleepstation’s services are not currently available for your patients, we can work with you to change that. Contact us to find out how to give your patients access to effective, supported care without the delays and risks of medication.
*Last updated: September 2025
Long-term benefits of Sleepstation CBTi
In independent published research and real-world NHS use over 13+ years, Sleepstation CBTi has been shown to produce large improvements across measures of sleep quality and quantity.
Because Sleepstation has been available on the NHS for more than a decade, we have long-term follow-up data showing that benefits persist after treatment is completed, unlike those associated with medication. 1 2
CBTi is recommended in clinical guidelines as the first-line treatment for insomnia, with strong evidence for improvements in sleep, mental health, wellbeing and quality of life.3 4 5 6 7
Across short and long-term management, CBTi has been shown to outperform pharmacotherapy for adults of all ages.3 4
Patients prefer CBTi to medication
Studies examining patients’ acceptance of psychological and pharmacological therapies for insomnia have concluded that patients perceive CBTi as healthier and preferable to taking medications for managing insomnia over the long-term.8 9 10 11
Interestingly, in circumstances where clinicians think CBTi would be helpful, they still mistakenly believe that patients would be reluctant to engage with the programme and would, in fact, prefer a quick medication fix.12
Sleepstation’s onboarding team take time to have these conversations with patients, relieving NHS staff of this burden. Our expertise in engagement means patients are supported to understand the benefits of CBTi, feel confident in the programme and are more likely to stay the course. This is why Sleepstation achieves much higher engagement rates than fully automated CBTi apps report, delivering more meaningful outcomes for patients and the wider system.
Professor Joe McDonald
Medical Director, Consultant Psychiatrist
As a consultant psychiatrist for 30 years it is always tempting to prescribe hypnotics when you are seeing a patient complaining of insomnia but with all the attendant risks of dependence, hangover, road traffic accidents etc. it is usually a mistake. Sleepstation offers an effective and safe alternative to prescribing which has been used in over half of England’s General Practices.
Sleepstation is an effective adjunct to sleeping pill withdrawal
Some GPs inherit patients who’ve been taking sleeping pills for years. Many use Sleepstation as an adjunct to a gradual withdrawal of long-standing, ineffective sleeping pills.
Heather
72, from Cambridge
I think it’s an excellent programme. I had taken strong sleeping pills for about 15 years before starting on the programme. It’s also an excellent example of how the NHS can use new technologies to offer support to people in what I think is a cost effective way. I am a total fan!
Before Sleepstation
Time asleep 5h 42mins
Time in bed 7h 30mins
After four sessions
Time asleep 7h
Time in bed 7h 35mins
Read more about our results on our results page.
Information for referrers PDF
A PDF document providing more information about our service and the patient pathway is available for download and free to share with NHS colleagues.
Sleep medicine training
We offer free sleep medicine training for NHS referrers. Sessions are delivered via webinar and are available at no cost to practices or organisations with at least five attendees.
The training provides a practical introduction to recognising and managing common sleep problems in primary care.
Programme outline:
- What sleep is and why it matters
- Taking a brief sleep history
- Common sleep problems and first steps in management
- Pharmacological treatments for insomnia
- Non-pharmacological treatments for insomnia, including CBTi
To register your team, email training@sleepstation.org.uk.
FAQs
The Sleepstation programme is delivered entirely online and is accessed by the patient through their own smart phone, tablet or computer. Patients can access Sleepstation at a time and place of their choosing (home, work, anytime and anywhere) and they do not need to download an app to use Sleepstation.
Sleepstation is a personalised programme tailored to address the individual’s needs and unique circumstances.
The first step in treating insomnia with CBTi is to identify the underlying causes of the insomnia.
The Sleepstation programme begins with a week-long assessment and sleep review. At the end of the review, each patient receives a personalised report containing advice and guidance about next steps.
Most patients will progress to the therapy at this stage. For some patients, the Sleepstation therapy programme may not be deemed appropriate, and those patients will be provided with a full explanation and signposted to other services.
When patients enter therapy, a personalised sleep plan is created for them, based on information collated during their review.
The therapy programme which follows is based around this personalised sleep plan and is delivered via weekly therapy sessions. Through their Sleepstation account, patients also have access to a secure and confidential messaging service, providing them with access to a team of sleep coaches and CBTi therapists throughout.
Sleepstation’s NHS service is fully funded by the NHS in some areas of the UK. In these areas, access to Sleepstation is provided free of charge. Non-NHS patients or those in areas where NHS access is not available can choose to purchase Sleepstation privately.
The Sleepstation service isn’t available on the NHS everywhere. It’s currently available in some parts of the UK only. If you’d like to find out if Sleepstation is available for your patients please email nhs@sleepstation.org.uk.
We only accept online referrals. Completed referrals forms should be sent to tnu-tr.sleepstation@nhs.net You can download a blank referral form here.
With a shortage of practising insomnia specialists within the UK (fewer than 10 specialist centres), patients can wait many months, even years to see someone. This has left GPs and other healthcare providers little option but to recommend alternative, less effective treatments, and revert to hypnotic prescribing.
Technology is rewriting the relationship between patients, professionals and care providers. Patients are taking greater control over their health, and tools for patient empowerment and self-management provide opportunities for patients’ active participation in their care.
Digital healthcare services like Sleepstation can deliver customisable, quality care at a fraction of the cost of existing treatments.
Sleepstation is an effective alternative to hypnotic drugs.
Interestingly in circumstances where clinicians think CBTi would be helpful, they still mistakenly believe that patients would be reluctant to engage with the programme and would, in fact, prefer a quick medication fix.
39% of general practitioners in a UK study indicated that patient demand is the reason they use pharmacological treatments for insomnia. Similarly, a survey of Australian GPs indicated that the most common barriers to using a non-pharmacological treatment for insomnia were patients wanting/expecting medication (31%), followed by noncompliance due to the effort required for non-pharmacological treatment (21%). 49% of Belgian family physicians indicated that they felt it is too difficult to motivate patients for non-pharmacological treatment for insomnia.
However, patients perceive CBTi as healthier and preferable to taking medications for managing insomnia over the long-term.
Sleepstation’s online CBTi programme has been shown to be as effective as clinic based psychological therapy and can effectively resolve even the most chronic insomnia, with long-lasting benefits for the patient and fewer side effects than pharmacological interventions.
Sleepstation can resolve insomnia symptoms and improve quality of life for over 80% of patients who engage with the programme. Further information can be found here.
Insomnia is often seen as a symptom rather than a disorder. In a study with Australian general practitioners, 54% indicated that they initially treat the perceived underlying causes of insomnia, e.g. anxiety, depression, pain, or other conditions. For instance, a survey in primary care settings shows that clinicians believe that insomnia will resolve either sometimes (49%) or often (45%) following treatment of depression and PTSD.
Although insomnia is often linked with other conditions, it’s incorrect to assume that by treating the condition this will necessarily improve sleep. Both the condition and the sleep problems need to be treated effectively and that often means as separate interventions.
References
- Morin CM, Colecchi C, Stone J, Sood R, Brink D. Behavioral and pharmacological therapies for late-life insomnia: a randomized controlled trial. Jama. 1999 Mar 17;281(11):991-9.\ ↩︎
- Omvik S, Pallesen S, Havik OE, Kvale G, Nordhus IH. Cognitive behavioral therapy vs zopiclone for treatment of chronic primary insomnia in older adults: a randomized controlled trial. Jama. 2006 Jun 28;295(24):2851-8.\ ↩︎
- Alberta Medical Association (2015) Assessment to management of adult insomnia. Clinical practice guideline.\ ↩︎
- Sateia MJ, Buysse DJ, Krystal AD, Neubauer DN, Heald JL (2017) Clinical Practice Guideline for the Pharmacologic Treatment of Chronic Insomnia in Adults: An American Academy of Sleep Medicine Clinical Practice Guideline. J Clin Sleep Med 13(2), 307-349.\ ↩︎
- Ree M, Junge M, Cunnington D (2017) Australasian Sleep Association position statement regarding the use of psychological/behavioral treatments in the management of insomnia in adults. Sleep Med Suppl 1, S43-S47. ↩︎
- Qaseem A, Kansagara D, Forciea MA, Cooke M, Denberg TD; Clinical Guidelines Committee of the American College of Physicians. (2016) Management of Chronic Insomnia Disorder in Adults: A Clinical Practice Guideline. Ann Intern Med. 165(2), 125-33. ↩︎
- Wilson S, Anderson K, Baldwin D, Dijk DJ, Espie A, Espie C, Gringras P, Krystal A, Nutt D, Selsick H, Sharpley A (2019) British Association for Psychopharmacology consensus statement on evidence-based treatment of insomnia, parasomnias and circadian rhythm disorders: An update. J Psychopharmacol 33(8), 923-947. ↩︎
- Morin C, Gaulier B, Barry T, Kowatch R.A, Patients’ Acceptance of Psychological and Pharmacological Therapies for Insomnia, Sleep, Volume 15, Issue 4, July 1992, Pages 302–305.\ ↩︎
- Vincent N, Lionberg C. Treatment preference and patient satisfaction in chronic insomnia. Sleep. 2001;24(4):411–417. ↩︎
- Azad N, Byszewski A, Sarazin FF, McLean W, Koziarz P. Hospitalized patients’ preference in the treatment of insomnia: pharmacological versus non-pharmacological. Can J Clin Pharmacol. 2003;10(2):89–92. ↩︎
- Siriwardena AN, Qureshi MZ, Dyas JV, Middleton H, Orner R. Magic bullets for insomnia? Patients’ use and experiences of newer (Z drugs) versus older (benzodiazepine) hypnotics for sleep problems in primary care. Br J Gen Pract. 2008;58(551):417–422. ↩︎
- Ulmer CS, Bosworth HB, Beckham JC, et al. Veterans affairs primary care provider perceptions of insomnia treatment. J Clin Sleep Med. 2017;13(8):991–999. ↩︎