New Initiative Unites Social Care, Industry for CareTech
A groundbreaking initiative to transform adult social care through technology and data-driven solutions has officially launched.
The University of Liverpool, in partnership with the National Care Forum, not-for-profit care providers, people receiving care, and industry partners, is establishing an Adult Social Care Testbed. The project is the latest initiative from the University of Liverpool’s Civic HealthTech Innovation Zone (CHI-Zone) and is funded by the Liverpool City Region Life Sciences Innovation Zone Programme.
The Testbed aims to develop innovative tech products and services, catalyse the use of provider data and upskill the care workforce in the Liverpool City Region (LCR). Through this work, it seeks to nurture inclusive growth and help transform the care and support experienced by working-aged adults with disabilities and the region’s growing ageing population.
Members of the National Care Forum (NCF) – the leading voice for not-for-profit social care and support providers in the UK – will collaborate with tech and data partners and all parties will be invited to benefit from access to the University’s cutting-edge research and engineering expertise.
A recent report published by the Health and Care Select Committee illustrates that adult social care is under pressure and needs urgent reform. In 2023/24, local authorities received more than 2 million support requests. In Cheshire and Merseyside, 10% of working-age adults work in care, while an estimated 9% are unpaid carers. Around 23% of adults regard themselves as disabled. Together, more than 40% of the region’s adults are actively involved in the provision or receipt of care and support. The Testbed aims to harness the professional expertise and lived experience they represent to establish LCR as a pioneer in CareTech development.
This week marked a significant milestone as key stakeholders convened for the inaugural meeting of provider organisations involved in the Testbed, laying the groundwork for a future where data and technology empower care givers and recipients.
Professor Iain Buchan, W.H. Duncan Chair in Public Health Systems, Associate Pro Vice Chancellor for Innovation, and Director of Civic Health Innovation Labs (CHIL) said: “The CHI-Zone is hard-wired for collaboration, particularly across the health-social care divide, where shared data and innovative technologies can greatly improve health and social wellbeing together. We are seeding new opportunities to innovate involving academics, frontline professionals, and people with lived experience of health and care challenges. Our Adult Social Care Testbed will take an agile approach to co-designing solutions, making better use of data, supporting the development and evaluation of innovative technologies, and upskilling the care workforce. This will transform the experience of those receiving care whilst boosting the region’s economy.”
Councillor Liam Robinson, Liverpool City Region Combined Authority Cabinet Member for Innovation, said: “Delivering high-quality adult social care to an ageing population is one of the key issues facing society today. This testbed is a really exciting response to that challenge and offers the real possibility of delivering care differently, through using data, innovative technologies and training. Delivered through the CHI-Zone it is exactly the type of project we want to support as part of our Life Sciences Innovation Zone programme and I am looking forward to seeing what solutions it creates.”
Vic Rayner, Chief Executive Officer at the National Care Forum said: “We’re delighted to have brought together our members from the Liverpool City Region Combined Authority to join us in breaking ground on a pioneering and ambitious project that will revolutionise the provision of adult social care. The Social Care Test Bed for the Liverpool City Region Combined Authority is a unique collective of care providers, academic experts, technical professionals, people with lived experience and industry leaders. Together this cohort will co-design, test and evaluate data driven and tech-enabled social care solutions, setting a new benchmark for innovation in social care and charting an exciting course towards care for the future and the role not-for-profit providers will play in that journey.
“The breadth and depth of social care and support provision represented by this project is truly inspiring and reflects the abundance of innovative thinking and expertise that exists amongst our not-for-profit members in the Liverpool City Region Combined Authority. I look forward to the exciting work that is ahead of us and presenting our members with a number of immediate opportunities. These include the chance to go through a data and digital maturity exercise and digital skills training together with participating in q pilot for the Care Technologist training and the Care Innovation Challenge. This very special collaboration will yield many milestones and achievements, and we look forward to sharing these in due course.”
The £160m Life Sciences Innovation Zone Programme forms part of the Government’s national Investment Zone Programme, positioning the City Region as a powerhouse for health and life sciences innovation. CHI-Zone is spearheading the use of artificial intelligence (AI) and other data-driven technologies to transform health and social care – raising international visibility and driving exports from the LCR.
Pictured in top image (l-r) Vic Rayner, Dr Annemarie Naylor, Director of HealthTech and Innovation Growth, and Professor Iain Buchan
https://news.liverpool.ac.uk/2025/05/22/new-initiative-unites-social-care-and-industry-to-pioneer-caretech/