Transforming social care through the use of information and technology

Information and technology is transforming the way adults and children's services are designed and delivered. The opportunities are significant and the innovation and commitment to change in many local areas is making a real difference to people's lives. In a report for the Local Government Association (LGA), IPC explores current innovations and sets out a future vision for care that is enabled by the use of information and technology.

There are many outstanding examples of where information and technology is enabling transformation and we have developed this paper with councils, building on existing learning and sharing new and innovative practice. The research was informed by a digital maturity self-assessment that the LGA carried out with councils in early 2016.

Information and technology can support people to live at home for longer, enable professionals to work effectively together across multiple organisations and help commissioners to target services where they will have the greatest impact. Information and technology is also key to the integration of health and social care.

All too often technology is seen as the responsibility of IT specialists. This paper, however, encourages senior officers, elected members and partners to think about transformation first and to consider the role that information and technology can play in enabling the future local vision for services delivered to children, adults and families.