SCIE announces AI collaboration that aims to reduce social care costs

The Social Care Institute for Excellence (SCIE) has partnered up with Agilisys, a generative artificial intelligence (AI) provider, to look at new ways digital technology can safely be put into social care practice to achieve greater productivity and cost savings.

Generative AI models use neural networks to identify the patterns and structures within existing data to generate new and original content. It is hoped the digital innovation will help social care workers to spend more time on critical tasks, delivering personalized care, and less time on administrative tasks.

This collaboration comes as the social care sector continues to face ongoing inflation, demographic change, rising workforce costs, increasing demand for care, and tightening local authority budgets.

AI could help navigate challenges in social care

Kathryn Smith, Chief Executive of SCIE, said: “Thinking differently about social care delivery is necessary to navigating these ongoing challenges. That is why we are delighted to announce our exciting new partnership with Gen AI provider Agilisys.

 “Drawing on the knowledge, ideas, and experience of people who use social care is central to everything we do at SCIE and must be for the Government’s reform roadmap. We have considerable experience in supporting the sector in developing strengths-based approaches, and we want to work with social care bodies to grow an understanding of how these approaches can become a reality in the world of children and families’ social care.”

SCIE is providing hands-on support to the local projects funded by the DHSC’s Accelerating Reform Fund (ARF), and in particular will be gathering learnings from this, the first ever such fund dedicated to social care innovation and unpaid carers, to inform future social care innovation more broadly.

Andrew Mindenhall, Chief Executive Officer of Agilisys, added: “This partnership reflects our shared commitment to making a meaningful difference, combining Agilisys’ technological expertise with SCIE’s trusted knowledge and advocacy for excellence. From advancing Generative AI solutions to addressing key ethical considerations in social care, we’re proud to embark on this transformative journey.

“Together, we aim to harness the power of AI and cutting-edge technology to drive efficiency, improve outcomes, and support those at the heart of social care.”