Pobl Group awarded £65k funding as part of tech project to enhance the lives of older residents
Pobl Group has received £65,000 in funding to involve older residents in shaping new digital services.
One of just six housing providers across the whole of the UK who will receive almost half a million pound in funding between them, Pobl are the only Welsh based organisation to be selected for involvement in this phase of the project.
The total funding of £440,000 is part of the pioneering TAPPI project (Technology for our Ageing Population: Panel for Innovation) which aims to improve the way technology is used in housing and care for older people. The other organisations to receive funding are Bield Housing & Care, Haringey Council, Platform Housing Group, Southend Care and Wiltshire Council
Led by the Housing Learning and Improvement Network (Housing LIN), the TEC Services Association (TSA) and funded by the Dunhill Medical Trust, the TAPPI project seeks to address the opportunity that technology has to enhance the lives of the UK’s ageing population and the barriers that prevent its adoption.
The first phase of TAPPI concluded in 2021, examining current practice and setting out ten practical principles for using technology in housing and care for older people.
The second phase of TAPPI begins in September 2022 and it will trial the use of these principles in people’s homes over a 12-15 month period.
Each housing organisation will engage a diverse range of older people to test different devices, apps and systems across a variety of housing settings. Residents will be given shared responsibility, alongside staff, to make decisions about which digital support services to develop.
It is hoped that this approach will help Pobl and the other funded organisations to create digital services that are determined on the real aspirations of their residents, not what they assume their needs are.
To facilitate this process, the TAPPI project has appointed Co-production Works, a specialist consultancy that supports organisations to work in co-production with people who use services. Co-production Works will train residents and staff and pay participants for their time.
Victoria Hiscocks, head of research and development at Pobl Group, said:
“Pobl is delighted to be selected as one of the TAPPI2 testbeds. We look forward to working with sector-leading partners and contributing to this important programme of work. We have a strong track record in learning, innovation and collaboration and will use our experience to ensure we bring real value to this partnership.”
Professor Roy Sandbach OBE, TAPPI Chair and former Director of the National Innovation Centre for Ageing, Newcastle University said:
“The TAPPI principles will only be of value if they are applied in practice, and I’m thrilled that many housing and care organisations applied to become TAPPI testbeds. Those chosen will provide insights from a range of settings and, most importantly, will put users at the heart of this work. We’ll use the TAPPI principles and a co-production approach to develop digital services that address real-life problems of older people. I’m very excited to work with our six new testbed sites.”
The Cambridge Centre for Housing and Planning Research (CCHPR) – part of the University of Cambridge – has been appointed to evaluate the TAPPI project. Researchers will work with the six housing providers to quantify benefits from their work and share what they’ve learnt with the wider housing and care sector.
For further details on TAPPI2, visit https://www.housinglin.org.uk/Topics/browse/Design-building/tappi/tappi2/
Housing LIN
The Housing Learning and Improvement Network (LIN) is a sophisticated network bringing together housing, health and social care professionals in England, Wales, and Scotland to exemplify innovative housing solutions for an ageing population. The Housing LIN is recognised by government and the housing with care sector as a leading ‘knowledge hub’ on specialist housing.
TSA
The Technology Enabled Care (TEC) Services Association is the representative body for technology enabled care (TEC) services across the UK, working on behalf of and advising organisations including telecare and telehealth service providers, suppliers, housing associations, care providers, emergency services, academia, charities, government bodies and health and social care commissioners.
The Dunhill Medical Trust
The Dunhill Medical Trust funds the remarkable science and the radical social change needed for healthier older age. The Trust invests in those who have great ideas and methods for improving the health and well-being of older people and in making the connections which can help them to flourish.
