TSA Housing Commission

Technology Enabled Care in Housing: a practical Blueprint for stronger, connected and future-ready resident services

The TSA Housing Commission, supported by Tunstall Healthcare (UK), is bringing together people and organisations from across housing, health, care and technology, alongside people with lived experience, to explore how social housing can play a greater role in prevention.

Chaired by Warren Heppolette, Director of the Prevention Demonstrator at Greater Manchester Combined Authority, the Commission will develop a practical Blueprint to help social housing providers strengthen resident services and make better use of data, digital infrastructure and technology enabled care.

Why the Commission has been formed

Housing has an important role to play in people’s health, wellbeing, safety and independence.

Social housing providers have close links with residents and communities and often hold valuable information about homes, changing needs and emerging risks. Used responsibly, this can help organisations identify problems earlier, coordinate support and prevent issues from reaching crisis point.

At the same time, housing providers are responding to significant change, including:

• The move from analogue to digital services
• Demographic change and increasing levels of resident vulnerability
• Pressure across housing, health and social care
• Growing expectations around safety, quality and regulation
• A stronger national focus on prevention and neighbourhood health

The Commission will look at how housing can respond to these changes while keeping people, outcomes and communities at the centre.

The Commission’s vision

The Commission is exploring how housing can become a stronger part of the UK’s prevention infrastructure.

The focus is on social housing, residents and communities. Technology is an important enabler, but the Blueprint will look more broadly at the people, processes, culture, data, partnerships and services needed to support better outcomes.

The aim is to help providers move from largely reactive approaches towards more proactive, preventative and person-centred resident services.

Who the Blueprint is for

The Blueprint is being developed primarily for two audiences:

It will also provide a useful reference point for government, commissioners, regulators, health and care partners and wider sector organisations.

What the Blueprint will include

The Blueprint will give housing organisations a practical route from understanding the opportunity through to implementation and continuous improvement.

It is expected to include:

The case for change
A clear explanation of the pressures and opportunities facing social housing, including demographic change, the digital switchover, resident vulnerability and the growing emphasis on prevention.

A future resident service model
A practical description of what stronger, connected and future-ready resident services could look like, with technology supporting wider service and resident outcomes.

A maturity framework
A practical way for organisations to assess their current capabilities, understand where they want to get to and identify the guidance and tools most relevant to them.
The framework will focus on capability rather than prescribing a single model for every provider.

Board assurance and governance
Guidance to help organisations understand responsibility, risk and assurance across digital services, resident support and organisational decision-making.

Operating model and workforce
Practical considerations around people, skills, culture, partnerships and the way services are designed and delivered.

Data governance and responsible use of technology
Guidance around the responsible use of data and emerging technologies, including the safeguards and governance needed to support trusted services.

Implementation and procurement guidance
Practical steps to help organisations move from planning into delivery, including service design, technology selection, procurement and partnership working.

Investment and value
Tools and approaches to help providers understand costs, benefits, risks, the cost of inaction and the case for investment.

Good practice and case studies
Examples from different types and sizes of provider, alongside partnerships and programmes from across the UK.

A clear route to action
Practical guidance that organisations can adapt to their own size, geography, resident population, level of maturity and local partnerships.

Co-production and lived experience

Residents, families and carers will play an important role throughout the development of the Blueprint.

Co-production will be considered across the whole process, from defining the case for change and designing services through to decisions around technology, data, evaluation and scaling.

This will help ensure that services are designed with residents and communities, and that technology supports the outcomes that matter to people.

A UK-wide approach

The Commission includes perspectives from England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland.

The Blueprint will recognise that housing, health and care systems differ across the four nations and will focus on principles and practical approaches that can be adapted to different local and national contexts.

How the Commission will work

The Blueprint will be developed through evidence gathering, discussion and testing with the sector.

The Commission’s work will include:

• Interviews with housing providers and sector leaders

• Input from residents, families and carers

• A review of policy, research, regulation and existing good practice

• Case studies from across housing, health, care and technology

• Engagement with organisations at different stages of readiness

• Commission sessions to test emerging findings and practical tools

• Independent peer review and challenge

The aim is to produce guidance that is grounded in evidence and real experience and can be used practically by housing organisations.

The first Commission meeting

The Commission held its first meeting in Manchester on 21 July 2026.

The session brought together housing and care providers, local and regional authorities, health and social care commissioners, professional bodies and people with lived experience from across the UK.

Discussions explored:

• The role housing can play in prevention and neighbourhood health
• How data can help identify risk earlier
• The need for stronger collaboration between housing, health and care
• Culture, workforce and organisational readiness
• Governance and responsible use of data
• The importance of designing services with residents
• What housing boards and operational teams need from the Blueprint
• How evidence, case studies and practical tools can support investment and implementation

The meeting confirmed the scope of the Commission and helped shape the structure, evidence priorities and practical focus of the Blueprint.

Programme timeline

Evidence gathering and sector engagement will continue through autumn 2026.

Emerging findings, the maturity framework and practical tools will then be tested with Commission members, residents and organisations at different stages of readiness across the UK.

Drafting, challenge and peer review will continue through the end of 2026.

The completed Housing Blueprint and associated practical tools are due to be published in January 2027.

Supported by Tunstall Healthcare

The TSA Housing Commission is supported by Tunstall Healthcare (UK).

TSA is acting as the independent convenor of the Commission and will lead the evidence gathering, sector engagement and development of the final Blueprint.

F​or more information

C​ontact joe.mcloughlin@tsa-voice.org.uk if you require any more details on the Housing Commission.