Over the past financial year, we have made meaningful progress in improving health and care services not only in North East London, but increasingly beyond. While our core mission remains rooted in supporting happier, healthier lives and regenerating communities through research, innovation and workforce development, our work is now reaching further. This year saw our influence expand into Devon and the West Midlands, where we’re supporting the adoption of technology in adult social care to help people stay safe and independent at home for longer. With a continued commitment to inclusivity, co-production and practical innovation, our work is creating real impact for residents, care professionals and system leaders across North East London and well beyond its borders. Research and Innovation Highlights Exploring the future of assistive tech in care: We continue to lead innovation in the adult social care sector by supporting the implementation and evaluation of assistive technology across Barking and Dagenham, Redbridge, and the West Midlands. In Barking and Dagenham, we are working with domiciliary care partners to embed digital tools that help people receiving care remain safe and well at home. In Redbridge, we are piloting sensor-based technologies to detect and prevent trips and falls among older people, while in the West Midlands, we are independently evaluating a large-scale technology-enabled care programme. Across all three areas, our work focuses on prevention, workforce empowerment and designing with communities, ensuring that technology is implemented in a way that is meaningful, equitable, and impactful. In addition we co-authored a white paper with technology partner Feebris, advocating for digitally enabled care models in care homes. This approach has been shown to improve outcomes, reduce hospital admissions, and offer a blueprint for integrated, preventative care. "We are proud to be working with local authority on this innovative project and are excited to see the impact already made in transforming outcomes for care teams and for residents proving that investment in social care is not only strengthening the sector but also providing a route to reducing growing pressures on the health system. It’s clear that we’re currently at a crossroads, and now more than ever, we need organisations to come together, share ideas and find new ways to shape the future of care delivery, tackling growing challenges head on." Dr Elina Naydenova, CEO and Co-Founder of Feebris &Thrive Platform: The development of a concept, Thrive, a co-produced platform, aimed at empowering individuals to take control of their care, promoting self-directed support and enhancing personal agency in health management. "I thought self-directed support was just about getting a PA. I didn’t realise I could use it to access a dance class or a tech solution that helps me live more independently." Kit4Care Programme: Last year saw the conclusion of this programme in Devon, an initiative focused on training care staff with remote monitoring technology, strengthening relationships between health and care colleagues and boosting confidence to transform care delivery. Notable successes include the early detection of sepsis, saving lives through timely medical intervention, and rapid treatment of chest infections, preventing further deterioration. As a result, the Kit4Care Programme was awarded Outstanding Contribution to the Community at The South West Business Awards. "Because of the regular health checks from my care worker, I don’t have to go to the doctors as much, as I don’t like going." Community Engagement and Support Connect Project: Connect is a collaborative initiative delivered by a partnership of voluntary, community, faith and social enterprise organisations (VCFSEs) in Barking and Dagenham. The programme supports people who are isolated, lonely or housebound by building long-term, trusting relationships, surfacing what matters most to them, and wrapping a personalised web of community around their lives. Since launching, we’ve worked intensively with over 100 residents experiencing isolation, saving a significant amount of public money (over 12 months, the Connect programme is projected to save £3.29 million delivering £9 in savings for every £1 invested across these 100 residents) by reducing reliance on crisis services and, just as importantly, learning an extraordinary amount about what it really takes to build a more connected place. Our learning has centred on a powerful idea: that feeling like we matter to ourselves and to others is foundational to connection. We’ve seen that this sense of “mattering” is often the missing piece for people who feel disconnected, and that helping to nurture it can be transformative. Whether it’s through small, deliberate gestures of welcome in community groups, participatory decision-making, or 1:1 reflection tools like SIGNAL, we’re learning how crucial it is to make people feel seen, valued and capable of contributing in ways that reflect who they are and who they want to become. This learning has sparked changes in how we work. We’re more attentive to how identity, self-worth and perceived social value shape people’s engagement with community life. We’ve seen how enabling people to “graduate” into new roles as contributors and supporters helps to build lasting confidence and connections. At the same time, we’re learning to look past fixed behaviours and identities whether rooted in former professional roles, social stigma or long-term isolation by gently building safety, trust and opportunities for self-expression. Time and again, we’ve seen that small moments of dignity and curiosity can unlock significant change. As we look ahead, Connect will continue to explore how we might build a more “connection-friendly” borough especially for people who are housebound or face barriers due to disability. Perinatal Mental Health: Through co-designed workshops with mothers facing perinatal mental health challenges, we have gathered vital insights that we hope will enable development of more compassionate and proactive health visiting services. "Working with Care City for this workshop has enabled us to connect directly with mothers in the local community who have experienced mental health difficulties, so that we could hear their thoughts on our research findings so far. The Care City team have been brilliant at designing a supportive, facilitative environment and bringing together mums and scaffolding conversations around mental health and health visiting. Thank you!" Dr Alison Lamont, UCL PowerHouseGames: Partnered with Power2Inspire to run an inclusive sports event to inspire inclusion across schools and organisations of North East London in celebration of International Day of Disabilities. Primary school students, played alongside SEND students adapted sports activities breaking down barriers and building bonds. "It was a truly delightful event and fantastic to see so many mixed-ability groups coming together and enjoying themselves". John Willis, Founder and CEO, Power2Inspire Workforce Development Initiatives Enablement Champion Programme: Eight care workers graduated from North East London’s first Enablement Champion Programme, enhancing the capacity of care providers to support healthcare delivery effectively. "I’ve worked as a care worker for 20 years. I’ve not had the opportunity to study until now. This has given me the opportunity to develop new skills, do better in my job and for the first time think about the future of my career" Enablement Champion AHP Preceptorships: Efforts to enhance access to Allied Health Professional (AHP) preceptorships have been made, particularly focusing on underrepresented roles, to ensure a diverse and competent healthcare workforce. Digital Care Summit In June 2024, we co-hosted NEL’s first Digital Care Summit in partnership with NHS England London, ADASS, and Digital Care Hub. The summit convened over 100 participants from health, care, local government, technology sectors, VCSE, and individuals with lived experience to explore the role of digital innovation in enhancing health and independence. The agenda featured keynote presentations, breakout sessions on digital tools for home care, discussions on data security via the Data Security and Protection Toolkit (DSPT), and dialogues on the challenges and support required for technology implementation, underscoring our commitment to co-production and bridging the digital divide in health and care services. "The Digital Care Summit, left us feeling positive about the willingness of social care providers and the NHS to work collaboratively to ensure those that use services are met with a joined up united system fit for today's purpose. Additionally, the advancements in technologies highlighted the potential for greater accessibility and efficiency in healthcare services". Clevacard, Event Sponsor Team Development We also invested further in our own team, launching a health and wellbeing programme tailored to individual needs. We also recruited two Design Researchers to expand community engagement capabilities and develop new participatory methods to address health and care challenges. And more recently undertook a bold new recruitment approach that focused on people, not job descriptions. Applicants were offered the chance to contribute to work in areas such as service design, delivery management, financial modelling, digital implementation, and more but the door was left open for new ideas, fresh perspectives, and unexpected contributions. This approach has not only brought new energy and skills into the organisation but has also reaffirmed Care City's commitment to co-design, creativity and inclusion at every level of its work.

Care City Community Board The focus of our Community Board is to involve patients, carers and representatives of our North East London community within our decision-making processes to ensure our work is led by the people we serve. It includes local residents, patients, carers, and staff from the voluntary sector, care and health agencies – people who have professional and/or lived experience and can bring that expertise to the Board. Since then they’ve supported our discussions around polypharmacy, developed (and starred in) materials to promote innovative new wayfinding for people with dementia, helped identify unmet needs in our community, fed back on marketing materials and comms requirements for new projects and sat on interview panels supporting Care City recruitment. Furthermore, our community board have worked with our NED board to shape the future mission and strategy of Care City. “I am interested in Public Health and have a passion for promoting a varied, health and balanced lifestyle that can be enjoyed. I joined the Community Board because I’d love to make a positive contribution to improving services in my local area using my professional and lived experience”. Ramatu Jollah, Care City Community Board member Over the last year we have actively built a network of over 200 community members who participate in focus groups to share their experiences with healthcare services and suggest improvements. This group has provided valuable insights into local hospital and community care services, shared their experiences of being hospitalised, discussed what could have helped them stay well at home, and identified triggers for social isolation and loneliness.

The total amount paid or receivable by directors in respect of qualifying services was £184,110. The CEO and COO are salaried staff, no additional payments or transactions have been made to Care City directors. There were no other transactions or arrangements in connection with the remuneration of directors, or compensation for director’s loss of office, which require to be disclosed.

No transfer of assets other than for full consideration