Ensure Smart Foundations Resources

Success Measure

Your organisation has modern and secure digital infrastructure, and staff have reliable access to comprehensive and up-to-date digital records. 

Overview

Ensuring smart foundations is essential when it comes to digital transformation. Building from a strong base is so important. Below, we talk through a number of steps that can be taken to form the foundations of your digital transformation journey.  

When using digital solutions to improve the quality and outcomes of people’s care, access to secure connectivity, the right technology and the right digital and data processes are fundamental. By considering factors including size, geography, demography and capability, you ensure your organisation is well-prepared digitally to help improve outcomes for people who draw on care and the staff delivering care and support.  

Beyond this, guaranteeing Information is securely communicated between and across health and social care settings by using a secure email platform to support integrated and joined up approaches to care is also essential.  

Finally, it is ensuring care workers have access to critical information about an individual person, through a single Digital Social Care Record (DSCR), means they have the right information at their disposable – an enormous asset when providing the best possible care. Investing in appropriate digital systems so that accurate information is readily available to support person-centred care is also a core part of ensuring smart foundations.

Resources

  • The Digital Skills Training Database - Digitising Social Care
    • A database of different digital skills training mapped to the Digital Skills Framework.
  • Data Security and Protection: Staff - Digital Care Hub
    • This free elearning course is for all staff working in adult social care services in England. Care providers can use this course to improve and assess their staff’s knowledge of data protection and cyber security – including their individual responsibility to keep information safe. The course meets the training requirements within the Data Security and Protection Toolkit (DSPT).
  • Data Security and Protection: Leads - Digital Care Hub
    • This free elearning course is for those with responsibility for data security and protection in small to medium sized care and support organisations in England. We have used the term data security and protection lead to describe this role. You can use this course to improve your knowledge of data protection and cyber security and to support your continuing professional development (CPD). The course meets the training requirements within the Data Security and Protection Toolkit (DSPT) and builds on the existing Data security and protection elearning for social care staff.
  • The Health Automated Podcast
    • The Health Automated team and special guests discuss what's going on in the world of social care, Homecare technology, AI and what they don't do with the other four hours a day when they aren't working!
  • The Care Leaders Network Podcast
    • The Care Leaders Network Podcast is the podcast for the leaders of care organisations.The podcast is hosted by Simon Parker, who is the the founder and Chief Executive of the Care Leaders Network, which is the professional community for the leaders of care organisations. In each episode, Simon speaks with the the UK's most innovative care leaders to explore how they are raising standards in Social Care.
  • The Tech Care Podcast
  • Cyber Assessment Framework - NCSC
    • Cyber incidents can result in a number of different consequences, depending on the nature of the network and information systems targeted and intention of the perpetrators. Circumstances in which the possible consequences of cyber incidents are extremely serious or even, perhaps catastrophic, generally require very robust levels of cyber security and resilience. It is for these circumstances that the NCSC has developed the Cyber Assessment Framework (CAF) collection.
  • Free Cyber Action Plan - NCSC
    • Answer a few simple questions to get a free personalised action plan that lists what you or your organisation can do right now to protect against cyber attack.
  • Data Security and Protection Toolkit - NHS England 
    • The Data Security and Protection Toolkit is an online self-assessment tool that allows organisations to measure their performance against the National Data Guardian’s 10 data security standards. All organisations that have access to NHS patient data and systems must use this toolkit to provide assurance that they are practising good data security and that personal information is handled correctly.
  • Cyber Essentials Framework - NCSC
    • Protect your organisation, whatever its size, against the most common cyber threats. A requirement in some Local Authority contracts.
Page last updated: 10 February 2025