Transforming Lives
Making a difference everyday through the Technology Enhanced Lives Service
PROMOTING CHOICE CONTROL AND INDEPENDENCE
I wanted to take this opportunity to say how proud I am of our approach to Technology Enhanced Lives which is helping people to live their gloriously ordinary lives. The service was designed in collaboration with people with lived experience, who continue to play a key role in the ongoing development and monitoring of the service. This collaborative way of working has been recognised by Kent County Council winning a number of national awards. I would like to take this opportunity to thank the social care workforce for embracing this innovative service. I look forward to seeing TELS develop with the latest innovations, and utilising data from technologies, which will help improve more lives.
This year we were able to support, Ady and Elena from Ukraine with TELS. Ady and Elena are in their seventies and moved to the UK to flee the war in Ukraine. Elena has dementia and is prone to walking with purpose in the community and thinks she is currently living in Ukraine. Both Ady and Elena cannot speak English and have no family or friends living in the UK to support them.
Due to the language barriers, careful consideration was taken to how to effectively communicate with the couple. To achieve this the TELS team worked closely with the social worker, an interpreter, and the couple. As a team we built a process of how to communicate with the couple in the event of an emergency. This was a collaborative approach which provided reassurance to Ady and supported him during a difficult period.
To help support Elena she was provided with a GPS device with a built in SOS button. Ady was linked to the device as a responder. By providing Elena with a GPS device Ady was able to support Elena to remain safe in the community. If Elena was to get lost in the community, or need support, Ady would receive a notification from the monitoring centre and would be able to support his wife.
The device provided by the Technology Enhanced Lives service has enabled Ady and Elena to feel a sense of safety and reassurance without the need for further care and support.
Helen Gillivan
Helen Gillivan Head of Innovation and Partnerships
Our Approach to
Shaping your Service
The Technology Enhanced Lives Service has developed four pathways. These have been designed by people with lived experience to provide support to residents of Kent. These pathways are designed to promote choice and control, while safely supporting people’s independence.
Photo by Humphrey Muleba on Unsplash
TELS Long Term Service
The Long Term Service has been designed to be an outcomes-based service for people already known to Kent Adult Social Care, or to people entering Adult Social Care for the first time. The Long Term Service is a non-chargeable service for a person who has eligible care and support needs under the Care Act or is likely to have eligible care and support needs within the next six months. The service put the person at the heart of the conversation and empowers the person to make decisions around the care and support they receive.
TELS Short Term Service
The Short Term Service is a time bound service designed to support people with hospital discharge, enablement and respite. This is prescriptive service where a range of technologies can be provided to a person at no charge for a period of ten weeks. At the end of the ten weeks the person is given the opportunity to return the technology, continue to privately fund their technology service, or the person can be referred to the TELS LongTerm Service if the person has ongoing care and support needs.
TELS Private Pay Service
The Private Pay Service is designed for people who do not meet the eligibility criteria for the TELS Long Term or TELS Short Term Services. The Private Pay Service can also be a preferred choice for a person who wants to access Care Technology without needing to interact with Kent County Council’s Adult Social Care Teams.
TELS Activity Monitoring Service
The Activity Monitoring Service is an assessment tool which can be installed in a person’s home for a period of three week. Through a series of non-intrusive motion sensors, smart plugs and door sensors the system helps Kent practitioners to understand routines and activity within a person’s home. This system enables Kent County Council to tailor care and support for a person through data led practice.
Continuing to promote safety and independence
The Technology Enhanced Lives Service is equipment agnostic, meaning that the technology provided is not restricted to any one provider or type of technology. This enables Kent practitioners to provide packages of care that can be personalised to the individual which can be built up of one or more solutions to support residents to achieve their identified outcomes to promote choice, control and independence.
Feedback from Kent County Council’s previous telecare service was used to shape the Technology Enhanced Lives Service. This showed that in order to enable individuals to live their beautifully glorious life to the full, residents of Kent could benefit from technology that can be used outside of the house. The Technology Enhanced Lives Service used this feedback to work with a number of teams, charities, care agencies, experts by experience, their carers and technology providers to identify products that are most suitable for outside use. Further feedback showed that there needed to be focus on the carers of those that are being supported, not just the individual themselves. A number of residents accessing the Technology Enhanced Lives Service, and their support networks, are now feeling the benefits of this equipment agnostic approach.
The Technology Enhanced Lives Service has been developed in collaboration with our partner services such as Kent Police, Kent Fire & Rescue and the South East Coast Ambulance Service to ensure that residents of Kent receive the best possible service, no matter the situation they are experiencing. This joint working approach has supported smooth transition through to partner services and back in to the Technology Enhanced Lives Service.
WORKING IN PARTNERSHIP
PRAISE FOR OUR TELS ENGINEERS
TELS provides personalised packages of equipment, tailored to the Adults needs identified in the referral form. Some packages are sent directly to the adult for self-installation, while others include an in-person assessment and installation conducted by an Engineer. Here’s what KCC residents have shared about their experiences following the assessment and installation visits:
100% of adults surveyed said the Egineer was kind and courteous
First class service, would recommend.
A very polite young man. He explained things very well.
Quick, courteous and very helpful pleasant young man. An ambassador for your team.
Just to say a huge thank you to you and all your colleagues help. The engineer from TELS has just been, connected up with some new equipment which doesn't use the telephone at all. Absolutely delighted with the service.
Thank you very much indeed.
Experience TELS for yourself:
Visit Our Demo Room
The Technology Enhanced Lives Service (TELS) and Broadmeadow Registered Care Centre in Folkstone, have established a Demo Room to showcase various technologies available through the TELS. This facility is open for visits, allowing residents and practitioners to gain a better understanding of how the equipment works. If you'd like to arrange a visit, please contact the TELS Team. You are welcome to bring the adults and their families that you are working with.
To visit the Demo Room, please contact the team to book in: telsdemoroom@kent.gov.uk
www.kent.gov.uk
Kent County Councils main page for the public which contains a wealth of useful information for anyone wanting to explore what Kent County Council does and how it can provide support.
This site provides additional ways to understand the technology that is available through TELS and examples of real-life experiences of people who are supported by TELS to live safer and more independent lives.
KNet
The KCC internal website KNet, is available to the KCC workforce. This resource is regularly updated to ensure that Kent practitioners have access to the latest service developments, helpful resources such as frequently asked questions, support materials, and referral form guidance.
kent.connecttosupport.org
Explore Kent’s Virtual House, which showcases technologies available in and around the home. View the equipment on offer and conduct your own research into the technology available via the service. This tool is available to the public to support discussions with KCC residents.
Working Together
The Technology Enhanced Lives Service has been co-produced with residents of Kent, utilising their experiences and expertise to develop the service. The Co-Production Group was formed before the tender process to ensure that the service was co-produced from the start. This group continues to meet regularly to develop and share ideas, discuss and plan engagement opportunities, and make decisions regarding service development.
The Co-Production Group participants include; Kent residents who rely on care and support, their carers, care agencies, charities, partner services such as health, and the service delivery team. Over time, the group has transitioned from being led by a member of Kent County Council (KCC) staff to being chaired by a resident of Kent. This resident collaborates with the service delivery team to prepare presentations before each session. Additionally, this individual has become the Co-Chair of KCC’s broader digital development program and incorporates this wider knowledge into shaping the Technology Enhanced Lives Service in accordance with other initiatives within KCC.
Before inviting bids from expert providers of technology, the service delivery team held regular meetings with the Co-Production Group to seek input on developing the service specification. This approach allowed residents of Kent to ask specific questions about the providers’ processes and how they would approach certain scenarios. These responses were factored into our final scoring of the bids.
Members of the Co-Production Group participated in the moderation team that reviewed the bids from providers. They used their insights to score the responses, which led to group discussions about their scores. An independent facilitator helped to negotiate the final team scoring based on these discussions. The group also decided on the branding and messaging for the service, so that the new service reflected the groups vision of the service going forward.
As a completely co-produced service, the team is committed to ensuring that members of the Co-Production Group are invited to any engagement events and service development meetings. This practice facilitates open discussions and allows audiences to hear directly from Kent residents.
The TELS team is extremely grateful for, and impressed by, the level of support provided by this group. Members of the Co-Production Group have reported that they particularly enjoy the engagement events and interactions with practitioners. To offer more of these opportunities, they also assist with the delivery of our training program and attend events alongside the team.
Peter Zein
I can say because staff and life experience people because we did feel team and when we don't agree was okay and we had democracy thinking if most people agree about some things and we did have a vote like little of icon we had choice what we like to use technology itself I do know it will help people because it is having personalise Equipment for that person and most important staff is understanding technology is changing, they are doing their best keep up with new technology because we are doing that beautiful co-production, and they are keeping that beautiful commitment to have life experience people on their panel that is why it is working good in Technology Enhanced Lives and we can have a laugh too, that is team where you want to work with.
John & Lyn Gallimore
A few years ago it would have been unthinkable to use the thoughts of people with life experiences, whereas today it is refreshing to have been invited to contribute to the co-production of the Technology Enhanced Lives Service (TELS). To be listened to and heard, and for actions to be taken to improve this proposed service by the inclusion of the lived experience voice is exhilarating.
Years ago the service user would have been fed with what the professionals decided they needed. Today there is a totally different mindset, illustrated by the use of the co-production process, which gives equal status to the voice of the users alongside that of the professionals. Already clients are more used to discussing their needs with professionals in technology, to enable them to stay within their home environment. We aren’t totally there yet but we are moving in the right direction.
Having had the opportunity to contribute to the planning and delivery of this new service, we are gratified to know that over the past year, so many people have benefited from the new service. We look forward to its continued development.
Outcomes based approach
TELS takes an equipment agnostic approach which allows us to use the entire market rather than relying on a specific supplier. This type of flexibility ensures that we use the most suitable technology for each of our residents. This in turn enhances the quality of care and support they receive. By not being tied to a single supplier we are able to continuously incorporate the latest technological advancements to ensure our residents benefit from the most effective and innovative solutions available to them.
Our mission is to empower individuals to live more independently and safely through the use of innovative, person centred technology by identifying gaps in support and providing tailored solutions. An example of this is devices like the NEWYES pen – an accessible handheld device that is able to convert written text into verbal recordings and relay to the user in real time.
We work with individuals, families, and professionals to understand the challenges they face and come up with the best solutions.
“All I will say is that I am extremely grateful to have this on loan, because of my disability, TELS gives me peace of mind.”
TELS Recipient
From memory aids to safety devices, we offer a wide range of equipment tailored to specific user situations and outcomes
We provide ongoing support to ensure everyone feels confident accessing TELS, making referrals and understanding residents needs. us entur
Photo by Hillshire Farm on Unsplash
October 2024
Record month for referrals with over 200 referrals received
Our First of TELS
January 2024
transitioned 3657 people to the Technology Enhanced Lives Short Term Service Launched
February 2024
Private Pay Service Launch
First Year TELS
91% of training attendees who provided feedback agree they are now more likely to refer for TELS
March 2024 Full Service Training Launched
May 2024 1000 TELS referrals!
June 2024
GPS Watch first deployed for a resident of Kent
Thinking differently about using technology
Anna is in her early 30s and lives in a Supported Living scheme. She is profoundly deaf and uses British Sign Language (BSL). In addition to her sensory needs, Anna has a learning disability and can find it difficult to adapt to unplanned situations. Anna’s parents want to enable her to live more independently, and they also want to encourage her to seek help from others (such as staff at the Supported Living scheme) to provide greater resilience on a day-to-day basis.
1. To support Anna to access the community safely, Jennifer noted instances where Anna struggled to return home alone, such as when a bus was late or when plans with friends changed unexpectedly. Anna, who communicates using BSL, found it challenging to make herself understood while using her mobile phone.
To help Anna live more independently, Jennifer learned about Anna’s past challenges, including seizures, flooding her home, and issues with food preparation. Anna felt isolated and anxious, especially when trying to call others in BSL.
Jennifer collaborated with the Technology Enhanced Lives Service and held discussions with Anna's family and the Supported Living provider to create a tailored support plan. The solution included:
1. Alert devices in her home to notify staff during a seizure and floods
2. A 15” Alexa Show for daily prompts, routine maintenance, and effective communication.
3. A GPS Watch enabling Anna to send alerts when away from home, using a text message protocol for communication.
Jennifer worked with the family on response options for the monitoring centre, assisted with WiFi setup, and joined the installation to support Anna. She later visited Anna to monitor the technology's effectiveness and its impact on her life.
In the referral form, it was estimated that Anna’s care plan could be reduced by approximately 5 hours per week on an ongoing basis, once Anna had got used to the technology and had been supported to undertake tasks such as cooking and washing independently (within the next 12 months).
Jennifer Jackson (Assessment and Enablement Worker, Sensory Services) worked collaboratively with TELS and won and Adult Social Care and Health Award to recognise how she has supported Anna to live more independently and safely through the innovative use of technology.
Abe’s Journey
Abe is in his seventies. He has been in hospital for a significant amount of time and was needing support to return home. He was recently discharged from hospital and referred to the TELS Long Term Service to support with the ongoing risk of fire within his home. Last year, a fire occurred at the property which was believed to be linked to smoking, and Abe did not call the emergency services for help. After partially putting out the fire and leaving it to smoulder, he went back to bed.
Ahead of a referral being submitted, TELS held a Multi-Disciplinary Team meeting with Hospital Teams, the Kent Fire and Rescue Service, South East Coast Ambulance and KCC Adult Social Care. As Abe cannot reliably seek assistance in an emergency, the emergency services agreed to attend all alerts raised by Abe, accepting that some of these may be false alarms. Similarly, the monitoring centre established a protocol to contact the emergency services if an alert is raised by a smoke detector – even if Abe says there is no fire at the property.
A dispersed alarm unit and two smoke detectors were installed by Argenti. The installation appointment was timed to take place the same day as he was due to be discharged from hospital, minimised environmental risks and helped to delay his going into residential care, which the referrer estimated would have been needed within the next 12 months.
Between the installation and the end of 2024, there have been a total of 10 calls to the monitoring centre. All calls received have been issues that the monitoring centre have been able to resolve, with no alerts raised with emergency services. Abe also contacts his carers for reassurance when needed.
TELS conducted a review of Abe’s service after 6 weeks and 3 months, which allowed the service to understand how the technology was supporting Abe and whether any adjustments were needed to his service.
Simple & effective Solutions
Tyler currently lives at home with his parents and younger sibling. He has dyspraxia, an anxiety disorder, and is awaiting a diagnosis for autism. Tyler has a sensory processing disorder and struggles with bright lights and loud noises.
In September, Tyler will be leaving home to attend university. To prepare for Tyler's transition to university, his referrer submitted a Long-Term Service referral and discussed with the TELS team the best ways to support him.
The referrer noted that Tyler dislikes clothes with buttons and zips and prefers watches without bulky straps. TELS aims to assist Tyler with daily prompts such as waking up, leaving the house on time, taking medication, ordering medication from the pharmacy, and picking it up. After evaluating his needs and identifying that Tyler dislikes clothes with buttons and zips and prefers watches without bulky straps, the referrer and TELS team determined that the James Watch would be the most suitable device for Tyler.
The TELS team, the referrer, and Tyler have been in communication about the support, and the James watch aims to reduce Tyler's need for care while helping him maintain a routine. This preparation will help Tyler get used to having these prompts before he moves to university.
The referral aims to help Tyler access the local community and be less dependent on domiciliary care. It is estimated that this support will avoid the need for 7-10 hours of additional care each week. The equipment is particularly beneficial since he will be moving away and will not have to connect or disconnect it each time moving from home to home.
We are excited to see the long-term impact this will have for Tyler, supporting his independence and his studies as he reaches this significant milestone.
Harriet’s Story
REMAINING AT HOME, FOR LONGER
Harriet lives at home, alone with Dementia. Her family are very worried about her due to instances of walking with purpose at night time, and wish to explore a residential placement for Harriet. Harriet’s wish is to remain at home, as independently as possible. Harriet and her family agreed to the provision of Activity Monitoring Service to better understand her needs.
Activity Monitoring was installed for a 3 week period to help understand Harriet’s daily routine and monitor key risk areas: night-time needs and front door use.
Findings
Harriet had an established night-time routine, with low needs despite getting up at night to use the bathroom. Door use data revealed her daily pattern with no concerns raised. Smart plugs in the kitchen helped identify nutrition and hydration needs.
Outcomes
Activity Monitoring data showed Harriet's needs were lower than expected, allowing us to support her in staying at home throughout the assessment process. Harriet's needs did increase, however, and she was supported to move to residential care. Activity Monitoring provided the data to support this decision, and ensured proportionate care was put in place.
1. Evidenced based care planning
Activity Monitoring provides real time data to support care planning. The TELS Team will support practitioners to interpret and understand the data from these devices.
2. Reassurance for family
Activity Monitoring provided the the social care worker the tools they needed to have data led conversations with the family.
3. Person centred conversations
Data supports our residents to meet their outcomes.
Image by freepik
GROW IMPROVE DELIVER.
Activity Monitoring
Monitoring activities of daily living to pro-actively provide insights for care planning and promoting independence.
Improved effectiveness of service via Automation and data management
Data-driven insights and operational activity overview.
Supported Living Pathway Development
TELS used to promote independence, dignity, safety and well-being within Supported Living developments in Kent.
Looking ahead: Our 2025 Roadmap
Transitions
Supporting young adults and families to navigate the transition to Adult Social Care with support from TELS to achieve progression goals and relieve carer strain. Forensic Mental Health & Apps Exploring Apps to support re-adjustment through digital interventions.
Our 2024 in numbers Over 2500
Over 2500 referrals received from Kent Adult Social Care practitioners
From those referrals we have supported residents with some of the following:
hospital days avoided due to TELS
80% Of KCC TELS users surveyed said that they feel safer as a result of the service they have received
30 Over referrals received from our highest referring team: Adult Social Care Connect
Our highest referrer has made referrals this year
73 Fire Emergencies supported
12,500 alerts raised by epilepsy monitoring devices
Over 10,000 Welfare & Reassurance Calls Handled by our Monitoring Centre
Over 2000 Ambulances called to support residents of Kent
Training Adult Social Care
Since the launch of TELS there has been a comprehensive training programme, with over 500 practitioners attending the training in 2024. The training focuses on introducing referrers to eligibility and criteria, ensuring clarity on how the service can support adults effectively. The programme provides practical guidance on how to refer, identify outcomes for adults and how to justify potential package savings for the council.
“I feel more confident about making a referral, and about the difference between the long and short term service packages”
“I now have more knowledge about how TELs can support people, how to make appropriate referrals, and have good discussions with clients around how this support can equal more independence and empowerment. “
“Thank you, very helpful training, TELS sounds like a brilliant service.”
“A great service and a life line to many people living on there own or at risk in the home.”
“Ensuring our team look at alternatives before putting in a package of care”
Listening to you
Matthew Crocker
Technology Enhanced Lives Growth & Innovations Manager
The success to date with the Technology Enhanced Lives Service has been shaped from listening to people we support and our internal and external stakeholder. The feedback provided has allowed the service to adapt and grow in its strengths. Some of this feedback as enabled the service to consider new and emerging technologies such as activity monitoring systems, app-based solutions and even a range of smart watches to support people in the community. As a service there has been consideration to specialist support areas such as working in partnership with Kent’s Mental Health and Sensory services to ensure everyone has access to appropriate technology. Through service development TELS has been able to work collaboratively with Adult Social Care Connect to increase awareness and knowledge of the service as part of the Kent’s prevent, reduce and delay agenda and ensuring residents of Kent have access to technology and the earliest possible opportunity.
The operational function of the Technology Enhanced Lives service has been something that has been developed over the year. Through listening to feedback from referrers and TELS Champions the service has adapted the referral forms used, improved information sharing through designing and equipment search tool and supported the workforce with a range of information and communications session. Through out these adaptations the focus has been putting the residents of Kent at the heart of everything we do, and ensuring there is a seamless service provided to people through effective communication and transparency.
Sharing the success of the Technology Enhanced Lives Service has enabled innovation sprints to be designed and implemented over year two of the service. Part of this sprint is looking how the service can expand and support care providers to start considering how assistive technology can play a role in people’s lives they support. Currently the Technology Enhanced Lives Service is working with supported living care providers raise the awareness of the service and consider adopting a systems-based approach to the use of assistive technology.
Matthew Crocker & Peter Zein, a key member of of our Co-Production Group, collecting the Silver Award at the 2024 Social Worker of the Year Awards
What residents of Kent had to say about TELS
After one year of the service being live for residents of Kent, some TELS recipients and their families reached out to share their experience.
The service will provide family members with reassurance that even if we were out of the house for a short period of time my father will have help if he falls over and we will be informed promptly.
Very happy, I am now able to live in my own home with help from family and friends.
Thank you very much.
I have always mentioned TELS to older or more vulnerable people, as it's very reassuring.
I do not worry about my balance and being shaky at home, as I know that if I fall I can call out and somebody will hear and answer me.
Has made it possible for my carer to leave the house for very short periods of time if only to go into the garden.
Has made it easier for my carer to get a better nights sleep.
This provided security for myself and my family.
Peace of mind knowing someone is available should I fall.
Great for emergencies, another layer of security.
The service is top notch. It is very reassuring to know that I will be looked after if there was an incident.
I needed to be awake each time my husband, who is suffering from vascular dementia got out of bed to ensure he didn’t fall down the stairs.
Being given a TELS Sensor was and is a godsend.
All I will say is that I am extremely grateful to have this on loan, because of my disability. TELS gives me peace of mind.