Digital transition

Gavin Bashar, UK Managing Director at Tunstall Healthcare, discusses the role of technology in making social housing more affordable from a health and care perspective.

Around 4.2 million people live in the social rented sector1, yet housing is often forgotten when it comes to integrating services that support vulnerable people. However, it has a significant role to play in improving health outcomes and supporting health and community care services, and making these services as efficient as possible.

While social housing is often cheaper than privately rented accommodation, and can offer greater security from eviction, local councils and the social housing sector must be included in developing strategies to offer more integrated and cost-effective support to those that are most in need, and the duty of care reaches far beyond simply providing shelter.

How to implement technology

Understanding how to adopt the right technology is important if we are to transform our services. This ranges from reducing costs and inequalities, to increasing inclusion and engagement amongst those needing social housing.

With so many solutions currently on the market and every individual requiring different levels of care, it can be challenging to procure and integrate the correct technology. However, there are some practical steps that can be taken.

Working in partnership with providers will support the delivery of effective technology enabled care services (TECS) and data led practice. A collaborative approach, including co-production with tenants, means any investment in technology is maximised and service delivery models are designed around improving service user experience and delivering organisational goals.

Outcomes and financial savings should be defined at the outset and tracked effectively. Good measurement is based on making sure goals are well defined and measurable, and that any financial savings are applied at the beginning so that the whole service can be evaluated, rather than smaller elements. The importance of outcomes does, however, go beyond financial savings. Providing more preventative and personalised care in social housing by using technology, also gives people more choice and control, which in turn can help to maintain independence and thereby prolong tenancies.

Integrating the right devices

There is massive potential in how infrastructure improvements will allow technology to enhance services. With the UK’s Public Switch Telephone Network (PSTN) ceasing in 2025 and switching to voice over internet protocol (VoIP), social housing providers need to audit existing technology estates and develop strategies for upgrading equipment to digital where necessary.

This will ensure that vulnerable people are not put at risk when we reach the cut off point for the transition, and that providers take advantage of the opportunity to use technology to offer tenants better support.