From Isolation to Inclusion: innovation in social service delivery to improve social inclusion and counteract loneliness in the NSR

Closed

Across the NSR many people are experiencing social isolation and/or loneliness. This is a multifaceted problem and finding a solution requires action from multiple agencies for its successful alleviation. The public sector is struggling to address such a complex problem. I2I will focus on innovation in service delivery (including utilising new technology, e.g. serious gaming, apps, chatbots, VR/AR) through bringing organisations together and co-creating solutions with the target groups. Therefore, the overall objective in I2I is to enhance innovation in social service delivery to improve social inclusion and counteract loneliness in NSR communities and neighbourhoods. The NSR regions involved will increase the capacity of public authorities to develop innovative services and provide them with new tools and solutions in order to improve social inclusion and tackle loneliness. It aims to do this by making existing services more integrated and improving cross-sector collaboration using a quadruple helix user-centred approach working with service-/co-design methods. Transnational cooperation enhances both efficiency and promotes broader thinking to stimulate innovation. It provides the testing ground for innovative community-based interventions and tools, creating more effective services for citizens while raising awareness of the issue in the NSR and increasing the innovation capacity of the public sector in regions around the Northsea to deal with social isolation.

Medium