London Development Agency launches scheme to help disabled and older people stay “independent”

The London Development Agency today launched a new scheme which aims to transform the way technology is developed to help disabled and older people live independently.

ATcare - backed by around £2.35m of funding from the London Development Agency - will play a vital role improving Assistive Technologies. An Assistive Technology is any product or service designed to enable independence for disabled and older people.  ATcare will bridge gaps between research in universities and the NHS, the real needs of users and getting products to market.

Research into Assistive Technology products is fragmented and it is often difficult to get funding to get ideas developed.  ATcare will provide hospitals, universities and inventors with access to core product design, development and testing, regulatory approval (eg CE mark), project management, marketing and business development expertise. It will work alongside organisations such as NHS Innovations - who develop products to improve health care delivery - to apply ideas in people's homes.

London Development Agency Chair Mary Reilly said:

"Assistive technologies can make the difference between someone being able to stay in their own home and having to go into hospital or into care.  Many innovators have already got the ideas to make that difference, but there are real problems turning them into products. ATcare will have the expertise and resources to bring these ideas to life."

The products to be developed by ATcare could range from gadgets that allow people to boil a kettle safely to devices which support home nursing.  By allowing people stay at home, Assistive Technologies remove the need for more expensive care provision - such as hospital and care home. With an ageing population, assistive technology will help increasing numbers of people to live independently for longer.

The ATcare Centre is due to open in the autumn of 2008. The LDA's support is part of its promotion of innovation and knowledge transfer in London.

-ENDS-

Notes for editors

1. The London Development Agency's support for Assistive Technology is part of its programme to promote innovation and knowledge transfer in London.
2. The LDA is working closely with NHS Innovations London, the Foundation for Assistive Technology (FAST), universities and charities to ensure that the ATcare Centre becomes a centre of excellence in Assistive Technology.
3. LDA support for innovation and knowledge transfer in London includes:
   - the provision of incubator facilities, such as the London BioScience Innovation Centre at the Royal Veterinary College in Camden, the Imperial Bioincubator and the Whitechapel Innovation centre which is due to open in late 2009.
   - the British Library Business and IP Centre, which provides a single access point for London entrepreneurs and SMEs to gain advice and support about intellectual property and how best to exploit it for commercial gain.
   - £500,000 for a 2007 Proof of Concept fund which specifically supports emerging NHS technologies. Distributed by NHS Innovations London, the grants enable innovators to turn their research into viable business propositions able to attract further investment from external sources. In 2006, over 20 projects from London Trusts received over £400,000 for the development of projects in a wide range of areas from Therapeutics to Software.