Empowering Ageing Through Technology: How ExtraCare Is Leading the Way
Written by Charlotte Millions
Smart Technology in Everyday Life
In recent years, technology has rapidly transformed retirement communities, offering everything from voice-controlled assistants to sleep sensors and environmental monitors. These tools can go a long way to supporting independence.
Residents across ExtraCare locations are increasingly using smart devices to:
- Control lights, plugs, and blinds via voice (helpful for arthritis or mobility issues)
- Reduce fall risks with sleep sensors that trigger lighting
- Stay in touch with family through smart displays
- Prevent accidents with tools like magic sink plugs for those with cognitive or hearing impairments
These technologies help bridge the gap between needing care and maintaining independence. In some cases, they can mean the difference between ageing in place or moving into assisted care.
The Ofcom Project: Building Digital Confidence with AbilityNet
Adopting technology starts with educating. ExtraCare has previously partnered with AbilityNet, a UK charity with 25+ years of experience helping older and disabled people use technology safely.
Through the collaboration, we launched the Ofcom Project, which delivered:
- 45 in-person sessions across five Birmingham villages
- Support for over 120 residents
- Training in online banking, shopping, communication tools—and how to spot scams
- Donation of 40 Chromebooks, with data support from Microsoft and Virgin
These sessions were client-led, meeting residents at their own pace and confidence level. Many participants went from hesitant to empowered, learning to navigate the online world safely and effectively.
Innovation apartment
In our newly built villages (the latest of which is Solihull Village) we create an innovation apartment which features a number of smart devices.
Innovation apartments like the one currently at Solihull Village are created as a ‘test bed’ for smart devices set up in a real apartment, this became a catalyst for providing smart markets in the locations.
Check out our Solihull Innovation Apartment
Check out our Solihull Innovation Apartment
We offered device demonstrations at open days. They were fully booked out and we were having to put people on lists and reserve lists for other days, while the smart markets helped to overcome residents’ hesitancy about using tech. We were opening their eyes to things and then they gave it a go, it gave them confidence to either buy the item or say: ‘No, it’s not for me’. – Kerry Stack, ExtraCare Research & Innovation Lead
Creating Tech-Enabled, Resident-Focused IRCs
Our technology projects aren’t standalone they’re built into the way we care. Dementia and Mental Wellbeing Enablers now use smart sensors that monitor patterns of movement, sleep, or behaviour. These insights help teams make better decisions and offer more personalised care.
As Kerry Stack, ExtraCare’s Research and Technology Lead, explains:
“If a company is investing in technology and research to provide their residents with the best chance of having a home for a long time, that can only be a good sign.”
The innovation team also has ongoing partnerships with universities and robotics labs, working on AI-powered environmental sensors that can detect illness or distress before symptoms even appear. One exciting project they are supporting is a PhD student who is investigating and designing a robot to help people with dementia.
Staff and Resident Training
We also invest in our staff’s digital confidence. From basic troubleshooting to understanding how to support residents using technology, ongoing training helps our teams become tech enablers, not just care providers.
Whether helping a resident adjust smart lighting or explaining a scam alert, staff become trusted digital allies.
Recently we completed the rollout of Birdie, a new innovative Digital Care solution, to our 18 integrated retirement communities. Birdie’s user-friendly Carer App is designed to streamline care delivery, offering features such as real-time task management, medication tracking, and secure, instant access to care records. The digital tool will empower our care teams to provide personalised person-centred, efficient, and safe care, ensuring that every resident receives the care they deserve.
Recognition for Innovation in Ageing
Our efforts in the technology field haven’t gone unnoticed. ExtraCare has been recognised in two national awards and won the Senior Housing Award for Best Use of Technology in Seniors Housing. It was a proud moment for our innovation team.
Is an IRC ready for the future of technology?
If you’re exploring retirement living for yourself or a loved one, ask how communities are integrating technology. Are they offering hands-on support? Are they investing in research and innovation? Are they looking ahead? At ExtraCare, we’re proud to be ahead of the curve, and more importantly willing to walk alongside residents as they discover just how much technology can support them.
Charlotte Millions
Charlotte has over 15 years experience in the PR industry specialising in content creation across sectors. For the past 5 years she has been writing about the retirement living sector, integrated retirement communities, and active ageing in later life. She specialises in news articles on later living and the benefits and options of retirement villages.
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