Mark Smith is Everon Group’s UK Director of Sales and Marketing. Since joining the business last autumn, he has championed the latest in digital wireless cloud-based solutions for supported housing and commissioners of adult social care services. Thanks to hard work and passion across the team, the effort is paying off in the UK.
In this piece he explores how technology enabled care in supported housing and other health and social care settings can deliver return on investment, how ready the UK market is for digital switchover, and the importance of thinking less about the kit and more on the capabilities of software for improving person-centred care and the central data capture that sits within it. By using software that offers data, trends and insights it will support their own company strategies in delivering a more connected approach to services.
Bringing smart technology to person centred care
In over 20 years of working in the sector, Mark has seen many false dawns when it comes to the take up of smart technology within housing and adult social care in the UK. Could 2025 be the year it changes? It certainly looks that way.
Using TEC to deliver return on investment
While smart technology has been embraced in a range of sectors and industries from banking to energy suppliers, it has yet to have the same impact within supported housing and social care settings. From temperature control to sensors in cars that inform drivers when it’s time to inflate their tyres, the potential has long been there.
A combination of ongoing challenges impacting the care sector and exciting advances in data-driven technology is changing things at last.
“There are far more discussions now by housing and social care providers in the UK around return on investment,” Mark says, “That’s not just in monetary terms but outcomes for service users too. More providers are looking at how they can evolve their services to be more proactive.”
Digital switchover focusing minds
This was already happening before the change in government last July but has accelerated in the months since and - with digital switchover fast approaching - is now at a tipping point.
This has partly been through necessity as service commissioners grapple with the challenges of attracting enough staff, increased demand for services caused by demographic changes and rising costs plus policy reforms from Whitehall aimed at delivering a more prevention-led model of care.
“You’re in a situation where you’re losing people but not recruiting at the same rate. It’s the perfect storm of needing to deliver more things to more people with less resources and less money,” Mark added.
One thing that has changed the conversation in the months since Mark joined Everon Group is the growing awareness of AI and machine learning – including sensor-led technology that can provide staff with the data needed to pinpoint changes in behaviour and detect any deterioration in health at the earliest stage.
“The talk around machine learning and AI has increased significantly, even in the last six months. Our focus at Everon Group is to show how these technologies can support care providers in sustainably and safely delivering cost-effective, high-quality services,” Mark said.
Leading the conversation at ITEC 2025
This year’s ITEC conference in Birmingham provided the perfect opportunity to have that conversation with people working on housing and social care about where they are in their digital transformation journey. The team is now following up with more than 60 potential future clients spoken to over the course of the two-day event. The common theme from those spoken with at the event was a recognition that they may have limited financial resources, but they still need to do digital transformation.
“They were looking not just for the type of services the need to deliver now but also the need for data and the understanding of what AI and machine learning could bring,” Mark said.
Digital switchover is fast approaching
While there is still time for action, the long awaited switch off for analogue telephone networks by UK communication providers, in just over a year, and the implications for legacy telecare systems is focusing minds, not least in terms of making decisions on future investment.
“The timescale are tight if providers are to upgrade their systems before analogue telephone networks are switched off in January 2027, Mark says, “ITEC 2025 provided a chance to consider together what the implications, how they’re going to deliver, and what we – as a business – could do to help.”
Many housing and social care providers already have strategies in place that have a connected approach to delivering services to support a more preventative model of care. The conversation at ITEC and other events over recent months have revolved around putting those ambitions into action.
“A significant number in the care industry are still doing the market testing and are only starting their digital transformation now, even with timescales of less than a year. There is still time to get things sorted, and it’s vital that they make the right decision,” Mark said.
“Their choice is changing a blue one for a red one and getting what they’ve always got – and worse if they go for a short term ‘sticking plaster’ solution – or a digital cloud-based wireless solutions set up to provide data, trends and insights that will deliver for today and for the long-term as their services evolve, and more importantly supports their own company strategies in delivering a more connected approach to services.”
Understanding where technology is headed
From the conversations with those attending ITEC 2025 the challenge is one of understanding where technology is headed and how we can support them now and into the future. That includes being able to fund new digital systems. With that in mind, Everon Group has put flexible commercial options in place to help spread the cost of investment, including leasing terms thanks to a partnership with Siemens.
“Our focus is less on the kit – but on the capabilities of the software and its central data capture that sits within it. With our partnership approach, we can help our customers get the most out of this intelligent technology and data it provides moving at their pace while planning for the long term,” Mark said.
“SaaS based models in other sectors allows customers, whether in the public or private sectors to now consider revenue and capital options as a basis – such as price per month or per connection. That is where we’re headed as a sector.
“We are a business that are looking to evolve the services we provide over time into a more Saas based data-led ecosystem that provide data, trend and insights to care providers so they know where they should be focussing their efforts by being able to step in at the right time, whether that’s early intervention or putting in place a care package.
“If we’re to move to a preventative model of care then there is a real opportunity to make a real impact by using technology as an enabler for truly person-centred care.”
Everon Group works directly in the UK with commissioners of grouped or supported housing services – from housing associations to care home networks, local authorities to integrated care boards.
We specialise in cloud-based wireless technology that analyses data to provide insight for early detection of improvements or indeed declines in living independently social and healthcare issues to match personalised care. Everon Group partners include Clarion Housing, Hyde Housing, Community Housing and Jewish Care to name a few working in continued partnership on the digital transformation of their estates.
To find out more about how Everon Group can support your organisation book a consultation and we’ll be in touch.
It’s the ITEC 2025 conference in Birmingham next week, once again bringing together thought leaders, innovators and professionals to exchange new ideas and forge new partnerships.
Ahead of the event we contributed to a blog produced by the Housing Learning and Improvement Network : a dynamic community of over 15,000 housing, health and social care professionals across England, Wales and Scotland.
The blog coincided with the publication of the Telecare National Action Plan by the Department for Science, Innovation and Technology, setting out measures to support providers of supported and specialist housing as they prepare for digital switcover, expected to take place by January 2027.
We were invited as a supplier of technology enhanced housing and care services – and a member of Housing Lin - to share our views on the Action Plan and the proposed measures to ensure digital readiness across the sector.
If you’ve not read it, the Action Plan recognises the potential that the new digital era can bring revolutionising the way that telecare is provided across various settings – from single units and grouped schemes in supported housing to extra care housing and helping people to stay independent in their own homes.
It also explains that those who provide support need to take appropriate safeguarding actions to ensure digital phone switchover doesn’t impact the safety of those in their care. That starts with making the right investment decisions to upgrade systems for the new digital world.
In the Housing Lin blog, Peter Kerly, VP Group Sales and Marketing, highlighted the importance of digital investment for reliable assisted living, commenting:
“At Everon we have literally been sounding the alarm for some time at the lack of urgency by some in the industry toward digital switchover and the necessary investment to safeguard those in their care. With this action plan in place, our hope is that housing providers who have delayed their investment decisions for whatever reason, will now put their trust in the future and make the right calls.
“The window for action may be closing fast but it’s crucial even at this late stage that housing providers embrace the potential of technology, recognising the benefits of innovative, data-driven solutions now on the market. That means steering clear of products that are digital in name only and analogue in delivery.
“This not a time for ‘elastoplast’ solutions which will fail to meet the challenges that many providers face and are not going to disappear come January 2027. It’s vital that those providing support for assisted living invest their finite resources in systems that will benefit the wider health and social care ecosystem – easing pressures and reducing costs for the long term.” To read the blog ‘TAPPI days – A Telecare National Plan for Action’ in full, visit the Housing Lin website. To start a conversation about how we can support your organisation, come find us on Stand 11 at ITEC 2025 or book a free consultation today.
Everon have always been a proud supporter of the International Technology Enabled Care Conference last year and we’re delighted to be back again for 2025 at The ICC in Birmingham.
If you’re going along, come and say hello to Mark Smith, UK Director of Sales and Marketing and the team at Stand Number 11 in the Exhibition Hall. We’ve got a lot of exciting news, tech and insights to share but we’re also keen to hear about the progress on your digital transformation journey.
In the meantime, we caught up with Mark to talk power of partnerships, and highlighting the unique Everon mesh capability on its solutions and why this is important. A discussion on why ITEC is such an important event for unlocking insights, building knowledge and improving outcomes.
What is key to success when it comes to digital transformation?
The key to success is partnership. Fitting kit and then leaving clients to it is not the way forward. We believe strongly in the importance of after-sales care so that clients are not only confident in the use of our cloud-based wireless systems but know they can rely on us to support them in future as technology evolves.
Everon is a supplier of cloud-based wireless solutions. What difference can these make to service delivery?
Digital transformation that includes Cloud-based solutions have been slow to catch on in community health and social care settings despite being successfully adopted in other industries. In our view, it’s the future of technology enabled care with the potential to transform the care of the most vulnerable people in our community for the better.
There’s a lot of jargon in technology enabled care. Explain the meaning of mesh capability?
In simple terms, unlike traditional dispersed alarms in supported housing settings as an example mesh capability ensures there’s no single point of failure. If a single hub stops working, the other hubs– in close proximity – will ensure alarm calls are always answered, without causing any break in service.
Everon provides a central portal for use by supported housing and care teams in other settings. What difference does this make to person-centred care?
The portal makes sense of central points of data, trends and insights from TEC devices that can help alert team to potential issues before they escalate. In our view, it’s key to driving change towards a more preventative model of care.
What other benefits are there with the portal led system?
It helps in areas, such as planned maintenance. So, as an example if you are managing a wide portfolio range of supported housing properties wouldn’t you want to know the ones that are efficient or inefficient, which ones are the coldest or warmest? With our cloud-based wireless system, it’s a true connected approach to delivering services. By putting a central portal in place, you can access data, trends and insights from multiple sites, providing a live dashboard of what needs fixing or checking.
Why will this year’s ITEC conference be one to watch?
Last year was a start of a digital transformation piece, driven by BT and other communication companies upgrading their analogue and digital lines. But I think we've now got probably just over a year left before switchover, and I'm still aware of a significant number of supported housing organisations that are still going through market testing and have not even started to upgrade yet. This is certainly helping to focus the mind and think, more than ever, there will be a focus this year of partnering with services to work to certainly start that journey.
What do you hope to get out of the day at ITEC 2025?
ITEC is a great event that brings everyone together to a common discussion point on issues affecting the sector. It’s also an opportunity to show how Everon is leading on these great conversations and sharing our emerging best practice.
It's a place full of like-minded people all trying to deliver the same goal which is how do we prepare and support our services to deliver the best outcomes as the move away from analogue accelerates.
What do you say to those supported housing providers and others who have yet to start? Is there still time?
There's absolutely time. I think there is real merit in a cautious approach by providers. They need to get this right. What's important is not just looking at changing the old from the new. There’s a real opportunity to future proof services.
In our view that goes beyond simply providing kit. We believe in a true partnership approach supporting you and your services as service demands change over time with data, trend and insight at its centre.
What are the considerations that supported housing associations and care providers should think about in in terms of deciding the best solution for them?
Cost
The challenge of being able to deliver more things to more people, often for the same, or indeed less, budget has put some real constraints on future proofing plans. However, having said that there are commercial options and partnerships available to help spread that cost.
Future planning
It's also thinking beyond the here and now. When it comes to investing in new services it can’t just be about changing your red one for a black one. That can mean you’re always going to get the same type of service – and it may not be the right way to go.
Think opportunity
There’s a real opportunity for you to at least put a foundation and platform into place to push off from and truly future proof your services. Your services certainly don't look the same as 10 years ago so it’s important to plan way ahead. Working with a partner that is flexible enough to be able to evolve as you do is key to that process too.
Why have the community health, housing and social care sectors been slow to see the potential of cloud computing and machine learning to improve outcomes?
Wireless cloud-based solutions give you real flexibility to scale and to access the very latest in technology, including a suite of machine learning and artificial intelligence led products.
You look at the industries around us at this moment in time, whether that be banking, holidays, parking, they are already operating in an app-led digitally cloud-based wireless world. Yet health, housing and social care, certainly in the community, you could argue has probably lagged behind these investments.
There are several factors why this might be including the culture of the organisation and the obvious risk management that come with supporting vulnerable clients. New technologies and services quite rightly need to be tried and tested. The sector is at last recognising the benefits they can bring – including reduced costs, greater efficiency, and improved risk management not to mention using credible rich data as the first step to the benefits and potential of AI.
Why are digital cloud-based wireless solutions the way forward for technology enabled care?
As an example: smart watches are now commonplace , which give a wealth of data around number of steps, how your wellness is, how you're feeling, etc., right through to passive fall detection that use artificial intelligence to map out almost a frailty register to show a person’s risk of falling as the first step to more proactive and early intervention considerations.
Every digital transformation strategy, without exception, talks about a coordinated and a true, connected approach to delivering services: following the patient, following the resident.
The only way you can do that is through data, trend and insight and a centralised port of information. Now, a good example of that is in hospital at moment in time they're investing heavily into an electronic patient record system, which is exactly that same concept, trying to pull lots of information through from different departments to have the patient and the resident at the centre. That's got to be key.
Everon Group solutions support the focus on strategies targeting net zero and reducing carbon emission plans. This is through 90% of maintenance, upgrades and increased features happening remotely, which from a sustainability point of view is good news in reducing the amount of vehicle call outs that would have been needed previously.
What about added social value as a business?
Adding social value is important to us as is doing all we can to reduce our carbon footprint. We’ve recently invested in two apprentices – Anna and James – who are now fully part of the team and looking forward to attending and being inspired at this year’s ITEC event.
Discover what Everon Group can do for your organisation. Book a free consultation today.
The Future Telecoms Conference took place earlier this month, bringing together stakeholders from across the private and public sectors to discuss where connectivity is headed in the UK. Organised by techUK, this flagship event held in London was a forum for debate on today’s investment challenges and the critical need to bridge the digital divide for homes and businesses by extending reliable connectivity to underserved areas.
For those of us working in technology enabled care this is a challenge that we are well aware of as we get ever closer to the end of analogue technology across health, housing and social care and the benefits that will bring. With digital switchover now set for January 2027 and the government setting the pace for reform, this day long discussion could not have been timelier. It certainly should have focused minds.
The conference picked up on a recent speech by Minister of State for Data Protection and Telecoms, Sir Chris Bryant MP, where he stated: ‘there’s no route to growth without digital infrastructure.’ That referred to his appearance at the TMT World Conference in January 2025 where delegates gathered to discuss future deals and opportunities in digital infrastructure, telecoms and tech across the EMEA region and beyond.
This is an excerpt from that keynote speech highlighting the government’s role in supporting digital infrastructure investment and it’s as relevant to the TEC sector as it is the wider economy across the UK and Europe:
“A country with fierce ambitions: connectivity for all; inclusion wherever you live; science and innovation unshackled; AI unleashing greater productivity across the economy and public services.
“There’s no route to growth without digital infrastructure. The fibres, the subsea cables, the telegraph poles, the ducts, the data centres, the satellite connections, they are the central nervous system of a modern economy.
As delegates at the techUK event agreed, the time for talk is over. It’s now time for delivery. From the TEC sector’s perspective that includes reduced red tape, planning reform to speed up decisions and investment in the latest cloud-based digital technologies that are best placed to deliver a preventative model of care.
Peter Kerly, who leads Everon’s operations in the UK, said:
“Only with the right investment decisions that are focused on the long term partnerships and a connected approach to delivering person centred services will today’s acute pressures faced by the NHS and the wider community health ecosystem, including supported housing and care providers, be resolved."
Everon will be exhibiting and sharing how digital transformation can be delivered at the International Technology Enabled Care Conference taking place on 17 and 18 March 2025 at the ICC in Birmingham. You’ll find the team at Stand Number 11.
