Council Secures £1.08 Million to Help Keep Vulnerable Adults Safe in their Homes
VULNERABLE adults in Reading who choose to live independently at home, and their families, could soon have added peace of mind after the Council successfully bid for £1.08million from the Adult Social Care Technology Fund from the Department of Health and Social Care.
The significant grant – spanning a two year period - will enable the council to expand its Independent Living Care Technology Solutions, building on the success of the pilot program which took place over the last nine months. The project is part of the Council’s wider digital transformation programme, which aims to use digital technologies to make a real difference to the lives of residents.
With people increasingly wanting to live independently for as long as possible in their own homes, the Council is keen to use new technology which could help enhance residents’ wellbeing and help keep them safe at home for longer.
Independent Living Technology Enabled Care (TEC) helps residents live safely in their own homes with the use of sensors installed in resident’s homes which collect information on daily routines, such as sleep patterns, bathroom visits, and meal preparation. Once standard patterns are established after a two week period, the system can then generate notifications if any deviations from these patterns occur. Examples includes increased bathroom visits during the night or a decrease in signs of meal preparation. Family members can also access a friends and family app.
The aim of the project is to evaluate the impact of sensor technology coupled with intelligent, advanced cutting-edge analytics - particularly for individuals who have been discharged from hospital or are living with long-term health conditions. Staff have been able to use the data to provide appropriate support to residents and enabling them to continue living at home.
The Council’s Adult Social Care team strives to assist people to live as safely and independently as possible for as long as possible in their chosen environment, giving people choice and control and offering innovative care technology solutions systems which support people to live enhanced lives and a sense of well-being, safety, and security.
Cllr Paul Gittings Reading Borough Council’s Lead Member for Adult Social Care, said.
"We are thrilled to have secured this money which will now allow us to expand our successful Independent Living Technology pilot - a project that has the potential to transform the lives of residents and have a hugely positive impact on our communities.
“By harnessing this innovative pattern-of-life technology, we can help people enhance their independence, well-being, and safety, and help address the evolving needs of our ageing population in Reading.
"Most residents are adamant their preference remains to live independently at home for as long as they are able to safely do so, including after they are discharged from hospital. Because of this, the Council has a ‘home-first’ strategy in place and we now want to develop that further with new technology which have real potential to enhance the quality of life and the independence of vulnerable residents in our communities.”
The project is being delivered in partnership with voluntary sector care organisations, Buckinghamshire, Oxfordshire, and Berkshire West (BOB) ICB, University of Reading, technology suppliers, and care providers. It is being conducted in partnership with Henley Business School (part of Reading University).
Priorities the Independent Living Care Technology Solutions Project aims to address are:
- An ageing population
- Increasing demand for adult social care and
- Additional complexity of service users’ needs.