Lantern

Between 2001 and 2011, Britain's population of people over 85 grew by nearly a quarter. And with more people living longer, the demand on adult social care has reached unprecedented heights.

Much of that demand comes from people who aren't sure if they're even eligible for support. Councils can receive hundreds of adult social care calls per week -- but of those calls, often only 15% are from local residents who meet the requirements for assistance.

Lantern is an easy-to-use web tool that allows people to identify their own social care eligibility, reducing staff time spent on calls and costs spent on assessment processes. The tool guides people through a short questionnaire about their daily life, capturing their needs and presenting them with a personalised list of recommended support providers in the local area. Those with higher needs can have their answers submitted directly to local social services teams for further assessment.

By enabling users to explore their social care needs as simply as possible, Lantern saves resources for social care teams – up to £100,000 a year or more. It also removes additional strain from services in high demand, shifting the workload towards a user-owned, user-managed, and user-controlled system.