Beccy Incledon-Blevin and Lynne Horton from the National Care Forum, (NCF), explain how the Adult Social Care Testbed in the Liverpool City Region is ensuring digital innovation strengthens relationships, workforce confidence and lived experience — not just dashboards and data.
Innovation narratives are dominating the care technology sector. With sales pitch decks promising exciting transformation, we need to be mindful of the critical gap that exists between ambition and impact — the space in which proof is needed that technology works in the lives of real people.
Data, dashboards and devices can look impressive. But unless they improve everyday life — strengthening dignity, autonomy and trust — they risk becoming noise rather than progress. In adult social care, where relationships are the foundation of quality, innovation must always serve people, not the other way around.
The Adult Social Care Testbed for the Liverpool City Region, which NCF is partnering with the University of Liverpool Civic Health Innovation Labs to deliver, keeps the needs of people at the centre. This research collaboration includes 16 of our not-for-profit NCF care and support provider members operating services in the region, their workforce, people with lived experience, academics and industry experts. All partners are committed to co-designing, producing and evaluating new and emerging care technology, alongside exploring new data-driven insights.
The scope of the testbed’s ambition is laid out in the project’s first report, Discovering our Digital Potential, published in Autumn 2025. But this is not innovation in theory. The testbed offers a live environment for experimentation and “real-world evidence,” where solutions are piloted, evaluated and iterated with providers, their workforce and people who draw on services.
Suppliers working in the testbed commit to co-design and to evidencing the value new technologies can deliver in practice, not just in theory. That distinction matters. A device generating alerts or producing reports does not automatically demonstrate improved outcomes. The testbed creates the conditions to ask harder questions: Is this technology improving care? Is it making daily life better? Is it strengthening relationships rather than disrupting them?
This work is particularly important in a region where health inequalities are stark: around 47% of Liverpool City Region neighbourhoods rank among the 10% most deprived nationally for health-related outcomes. Innovation here is not about novelty — it is about necessity.
Workforce confidence and measuring what matters
At the heart of the testbed’s approach is workforce development. Too often, technology implementation treats staff training as an afterthought. The testbed takes a different view: upskilling is a core outcome. The project aims to support more than 1,000 staff across the Liverpool City Region.
Rather than relying on a small number of “super users,” the testbed builds digital confidence across all roles. Practical, hands-on learning is delivered through targeted programmes, including Introduction to Care Technology for frontline staff and leaders, and Introduction to Leading Digital Transformation for junior and middle leaders. These courses support staff to use data effectively, manage change confidently and embed technology into person-centred care.
Workforce confidence can determine whether technology succeeds or fails. When staff understand the parameters for using AI and digital tools, they begin to see the potential for reducing duplication, freeing up time for in-person care and complementing — rather than replacing — human contact. When fear and anxiety give way to curiosity, cultural change can follow.
Empowered staff become active participants in innovation, not passive recipients. They are best placed to spot what works in practice, identify what needs adjustment and understand how technology serves the people they support. This creates a virtuous cycle: better-skilled teams deliver better outcomes, which builds confidence for further adoption.
But confidence alone is not enough. We must also be clear about what success looks like.
Data generated by a device or system does not automatically show that it made a difference. In care and support settings, a tool can generate activity — logins, alerts, completed tasks — yet still fail to improve someone’s day-to-day experience. It is possible to scale technology that looks busy without being beneficial.
Arguably, we should measure two things in parallel. First, operational metrics: whether the system is reliable, being used and fits into the rhythm of how a service runs. These are necessary and relatively easy to count. Second — and more importantly — person-led outcomes: whether the technology has made life feel better for the individual and made support easier for the people around them.
Person-led outcomes are not vague or “soft.” They can be clearly described and observed in practice. A person may feel more in control, less anxious, sleep better, communicate more easily, stay connected or manage routines more steadily. Families and support networks often notice these changes quickly — fewer moments of distress, smoother routines, greater independence, support that feels less reactive and more responsive.
These are the real indicators of quality and impact. They tell us whether technology is strengthening relationships and enabling better support — or simply adding extra noise and extra steps.
Operational metrics still matter. We need to know if a system is reliable, secure and embedded effectively. But without person-led outcomes sitting at the centre of evaluation, we risk mistaking activity for impact.
The Adult Social Care Testbed provides a structured, credible way to bridge that gap. It allows care technology to be tested in real services, with real people, while keeping lived experience at the heart of what “success” means. It gives us a practical way to align innovation with values.
Ultimately, digital transformation in social care should not be about adopting the newest tool. It should be about asking a simple but vital question: is this improving everyday life?
If the answer is yes — demonstrably, observably, collaboratively — then technology is serving its purpose. If not, the testbed model gives us the courage and structure to adjust, iterate, and improve.
Further reading
- Adult Social Care Testbed – project overview
National Care Forum:
https://www.nationalcareforum.org.uk/adult-social-care-testbed/ - Discovering our Digital Potential (Autumn 2025)
The Testbed’s first report outlining its ambition, scope and approach to real-world evaluation.
For further information, contact:
Beccy Incledon-Blevin, Digital Care Development Lead – beccy.incledon-blevin@nationalcareforum.org.uk
Lynne Horton, Digital Skills Development Lead – lynne.horton@nationalcareforum.org.uk
