Glasgow-based technology firm Archangel is making strides in the realm of integrated housing and care technology, having recently secured a portion of a £600,000 funding package from the Smart & Connected Social Places (SCSP) 5G Innovation fund. This funding was granted with support from the Digital Health & Care Innovation Centre (DHI) and is intended for a pioneering project based in Biggar, aimed at transforming the landscape of retirement housing.
The initiative, titled ‘Evaluating care delivery in rural settings’, is a collaborative effort between Archangel, DHI, and Bield Housing & Care. The project is part of a broader programme that encompasses eleven digital health and technology initiatives across the Glasgow City region, bolstered by the UK Government’s Department of Science, Innovation and Technology (DSIT) through the 5GIR (Innovation Regions) funding.
Planned for a duration of six months, the project will encompass 25 homes designated for retired individuals. It intends to deploy a series of unobtrusive sensors within the housing units and surrounding areas to monitor critical conditions that influence tenant wellbeing, such as temperature, humidity, and motion. The collected data will be communicated in real-time to Archangel’s ambient assisted living (AAL) technology platform, which will maintain continuous 24/7 monitoring to proactively address any arising issues regarding residents or their living environments.
Archangel's sensor network, enabled by Angelnet, a robust connectivity platform, integrates broadband, mobile, and wireless LoRaWAN (Low Power Long Range Wide Area Network) technology. This setup connects various Internet of Things (IoT) devices within both the residences and communal spaces, enhancing connectivity and offering a resilient, scalable solution to the challenges faced by modern housing and care.
Tom Morton, the CEO and founder of Archangel, discussed the overarching benefit of the project, stating: “Data related to social housing, health, care and wellbeing is currently fragmented across multiple vendor systems and siloed datasets. This disjointed approach creates inefficiencies and hinders the large-scale adoption of IoT due to the costs associated with numerous single purpose systems and specialized skills required to manage them.” Morton emphasised the project’s potential to streamline data collection from multiple IoT devices through a cohesive communication infrastructure, creating a comprehensive viewpoint of both individuals and their domestic conditions that enables collaborative decision-making and timely intervention.
Gavin Wright, head of property management at Bield Housing, acknowledged the significance of the initiative, highlighting its role in expanding IoT within their digital strategy. He noted that it is closely aligned with the Smart Social Housing initiative, which seeks to address the challenge of disconnected systems in housing, health, and social care.
Furthermore, Professor Soumen Sengupta, director of health and social care for South Lanarkshire, expressed the importance of the project within the local housing strategy, aimed at supporting individuals with specific needs to live independently in sustainable homes. He anticipates that the lessons learned from this landmark project will benefit not only the local authority but also the broader Glasgow City region and the nation.
Janette Hughes, director of planning & performance with DHI, underlined the project's potential to enhance housing safety and responsiveness to individual circumstances, stating, “This is ultimately about making housing safer and more responsive to personal circumstances for communities, allowing people to live happier, longer and more secure lives in their own properties.” Hughes expressed her satisfaction in witnessing a Scottish business receive such significant funding, reiterating the role of the national innovation centre in fostering research and innovation in digital health, benefiting the population of Scotland while aiding businesses in exploring new funding avenues.
Source: Noah Wire Services