Local Support Organisations Briefing #175
Please remember, to help you with updating the Toolkit or even help you to register and start to complete the toolkit, our Local support officers Karen Holley karen.holley@careandsupportwest.com and Sally Willcox sally.willcox@careandsupportwest.com are available to help and guide you. Their service to you is free of charge. Please look out for their emails and offers of support.
General Updates
Review your digital progress with new What Good Looks Like self-assessment tool
A new What Good Looks Like (WGLL) self-assessment tool is now available to support adult social care providers at every stage of their digital journey.
The free tool has been co-developed with people working across adult social care and is based on the national What Good Looks Like framework for digital working. It is designed to help care providers assess their current digital capabilities, reflect on areas for improvement, and access practical guidance to help plan next steps.
The countdown is on! Update your DSPT by 30 June 2025
If you run an adult social care service in England, it’s time to get ready for the 30 June 2025 deadline to update your Data Security and Protection Toolkit (DSPT).
The DSPT isn’t just a box-ticking exercise. It’s an essential, annual self-assessment that shows you’re taking data protection and cyber security seriously – and that you’re following good practice to keep people’s confidential information safe.
Whether you’re completing the DSPT for the first time or republishing it for another year, you don’t have to do it alone. The Better Security, Better Care programme is here to help with free support, guidance, training and one-to-one help.
Care Roadshows returns!
Care Roadshows return in less than two weeks with two major regional events set to support care professionals across the North West (13 May 2025) and Midlands (15 May 2025). As part of the trusted Care Roadshows series, these free events offer essential insights, expert guidance and valuable networking opportunities for those working across the care sector. If you are looking for care sector events in 2025 that deliver real value for your service, these are not to be missed.
Spot threats early with the NCSC Early Warning system
As care providers, you rely on digital systems every day – to store care plans, communicate with families, manage medication records and more. But these systems are increasingly being targeted by cyber criminals. That’s why the National Cyber Security Centre (NCSC) offers a free service to help protect organisations like yours: the Early Warning system.
It alerts you to potential cyber attacks on your systems as soon as possible – so you can take action quickly, keep your data safe, and continue to provide great care.
Upcoming Webinars
Practical DSPT: Information Asset Register & Record of Processing Activities
Thursday 8th May, 12:30pm - See webinar
Practical DSPT: Data Protection Impact Assessment (DPIA)
Tuesday 13th May, 2:30pm - See webinar
Bite-Sized NHSMail: Essential Tips for Social Care Providers
Wednesday 14th May, 12:30pm - See webinar
Interactive Workshop: Responding to Phishing Attacks and Scams
Friday 16th May, 2:00pm - See webinar
Interactive Workshop: Securing Your Email Systems for Social Care Providers
Thursday 15th May, 11:00am - See webinar
DSPT 2024-2025 for NHS Trusts, Integrated care boards, Commissioning support units and Arm’s length bodies
Tuesday 20th May, 12:30pm - See webinar
Chatbot Artificial Intelligence - practical applications in social care
Tuesday 27th May, 2:30pm - See webinar
Practical IT Skills Workshop - IT Systems and Devices
Wednesday 28th May, 12:30pm - See webinar
Practical DSPT: Testing your Business Continuity Plan (BCP)
Wednesday 28th May, 2:30pm - See webinar
Comms Update
Jennifer’s Experience at ITEC25 - A Voice of Lived Experience in Tech-Enabled Care
Enhancing life through technology
Jennifer Pearl’s journey into the world of digital care and assistive technology began not in a lab or boardroom, but in a hospital. At 47, she was diagnosed with a spinal tumour that changed the course of her life. Now 60 and a wheelchair user, she has spent the past 13 years not only adapting to a new way of living but actively helping to shape systems and solutions for people like her.
“It wasn’t just about learning to live differently,” Jennifer says, “it was about deciding I was still going to live a full life as a wheelchair user.”