The partnership was formed in 1997 by Frank Hester,[1] a computer programmer married to a GP, to create a patient-record storing system that would help GPs after witnessing his wife's "constant struggle with the lack of connectivity and integration between NHS services".

In partnership with the University of Leeds and the UK Government's Technology Strategy Board, in May TPP launched ResearchOne as a not-for-profit health and care research database.

The company significantly increased its market opportunities when the then prime minister, David Cameron, invited it on trading missions to both India and China in 2013.

[4] In 2016, the company signed its first contract in the Middle East when it agreed with Qatari Integrated Intelligence Services to deliver SystmOne to the private healthcare sector across Qatar, including approximately 300 primary care sites.

A statement from The Phoenix Partnership said Hester abhorred racism and "accepts that he was rude about Diane Abbott in a private meeting several years ago but his criticism had nothing to do with her gender nor colour of skin.