Discovering Our Digital Potential: new report makes recommendations for future-proofing Adult Social Care in the LCR

Today, we are publishing a new report setting out how data, technology and digital skills could empower adult social care providers and support organisations in the Liverpool City Region and beyond.

Discovering Our Digital Potential has been produced through our Adult Social Care Testbed initiative, launched earlier this year in partnership with the National Care Forum. This cross-sector initiative brings together care providers and support organisations, academics, industry partners and people with lived experience. Together, we are working to co-design and evaluate digital solutions to improve the quality of care offered in the face of growing need and well-rehearsed workforce pressures.

Our report captures the voices of local care and support providers and highlights both the barriers and opportunities facing the sector as it seeks to make good use of data and new technology whilst safeguarding people who draw on care and acknowledging ethical concerns. Whilst providers are committed to driving digitisation, significant challenges exist, including fragmented IT systems, skills gaps, funding pressures and a lack of robust evidence to guide investment decisions.

To address these challenges, the report sets out five key recommendations:

1. Support for cross-sector social care testbeds
   Central government and UKRI, including Innovate UK, should support cross-sector testbeds to enable CareTech prototyping and evaluation.

2. Balance regulatory compliance with innovation
   Regulatory compliance and accountability for care quality remain vitally important but associated data burdens should not prevent providers from obtaining and making use of insights to deliver real-world improvements.

3. Prioritise funding for digital infrastructure
   National and local decision-makers should invest in fully digitising adult social care, with a particular focus on digital infrastructure and the adoption of strategic technologies. Investment should be targeted at areas where high health-related deprivation exists and productivity improvements are needed most.

4. Accelerate regional digital adoption
   Local commissioners should work with regional authorities to resource digital adoption across the care and support sector. This includes stimulating the CareTech market through capital investment schemes and leveraging industry funding to boost overall productivity.

5. Upskill and modernise the workforce
   Commissioners and providers should work together to expand funded training opportunities and create modern career pathways. This includes supporting recruitment from under-represented groups and enabling staff to take on new digital leadership roles that can help drive transformation.

The report concludes that the Liverpool City Region is well-placed to lead this change. With more than 88,000 paid roles in adult social care across Cheshire and Merseyside, the sector accounts for up to 15% of the local workforce and, yet, high vacancy rates, staff turnover and low pay continue to put services under strain. Digital tools, properly introduced and supported, have the potential to improve care outcomes, increase productivity and underpin more attractive career opportunities.

The recommendations build on insights gathered from care providers and support organisations operating across the region. They consistently identified the need for interoperable systems, automation that reduces administrative burden, trusted data that can flow across health and care services, and training opportunities that are practical and inclusive. The organisations interviewed in the course of the research which underpins the report, also, highlighted the importance of ensuring that technology is person-centred, designed with compassion, and avoids “data over person” practices.

Read the full report HERE.