EXECUTIVE SUMMARY
Kevin Wake of Suffolk Country Council in the UK
hoping to discover more about the key issue of getting to market, because that is the key for any product. It’s great having a good idea but if no one is going to buy it or use it, then is it really that useful? Clearly this project is still moving
towards getting their idea to market (they have a six-month extension), so the question of the best way to do that remains unanswered in this case. But I have spoken to them since the session and they are keen to work with us now and see if there is anything we can do together in the future so it has been useful learning.
So you are looking to get involved in projects in the area; will you be looking for funding through the AAL and if so what sort of area of research and development will you be looking to do? We are certainly very keen to become involved with AAL and to get funding if possible. We have two key drivers in Suffolk. One is about the economic development of the region in general, while we are also committed to providing good quality social care at a price we can afford. Ultimately, that means we are trying to get more for less by driving down some of our costs. We see technology as being a way to do that and so we are very keen to embrace the technology and find innovative solutions and, crucially, get them embedded into our systems as quickly as possible.
Speed seems to be a big issue here, so are you looking to get involved with something where the idea is well developed and ready to use? I think the key is the business plan. It’s all very well to have a long-term plan, providing that plan ultimately delivers – and by that I mean having a technology on the market that is able to deliver those quality services we want and need at a reduced cost. So if your long-term plan can achieve that, then that is all well and good, but most UK authorities are looking for some quick wins now. We have to drive down our social care costs so we are looking for things to move very quickly. I think you could argue now that
there is more than enough technology and many ideas out there to do this and that we don’t necessarily need new technology and new ideas right now. If new ideas do come along that can be delivered quickly, then that is great, but the key right now is how can we get the good ideas that we have already got, on to market – and that’s where we need the answers.
“We have to drive down social
care costs so we are looking to
move quickly now”
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