Published: 15 July 2025
Photo: Dr. Banhishikha Ghosh, Lecturer in Health & Social Care, Joshua Garnham, CEO & Founder - Emergency Personnel, Charles O'Connor, CEO & Founder - Verve Homecare
The University of Sunderland in London has been awarded £211,000 funding by Innovate UK for a pioneering 2-year Knowledge Transfer Partnership in Social Care - in collaboration with Verve Homecare - in a proud first for the London campus.
The Partnership project, entitled ‘Reimagining Care: Embedding Equity and Support in Healthcare Training in the Digital Age’, aims to generate vital insight into the lived experiences of frontline care workers - to enhance quality care, support workforce wellbeing, and embed equity into social care training and delivery.
Dr. Banhishikha Ghosh, Lecturer in Health & Social Care and the lead academic for the Partnership, said - “By co-developing practical tools grounded in the experiences of care workers, we aim to redefine how care work is valued and sustained institutionally.”
“The University of Sunderland in London is thankful to Innovate UK for the grant which will enable us to deliver transformative social care research.’’
The project will benefit from the support of Dr. David Nelson, Senior Lecturer in Computer Science, University of Sunderland – facilitating interdisciplinary research and enhancing cross-campus collaboration.
The Knowledge Transfer Partnership also strengthens the relationship between the University and Verve Homecare, both based near Canary Wharf, benefiting students on Health and Social Care degree programmes.
“Verve Homecare, alongside its sister company Revolution AI, is honoured to join this Knowledge Transfer Partnership with the University of Sunderland in London.”
“Bringing together academia and industry expertise is a powerful step forward and strengthens our commitment to supporting care staff through innovation and training - enhancing the quality of care they deliver every day.” - Leyla Hyda, Head of Innovation & Well-being, Verve Homecare.
The Knowledge Transfer Partnership is a first for the University of Sunderland in London, as it seeks to expand its research activities. The announcement follows the University’s exciting move to a brand-new campus earlier this year. Transforming teaching and learning with state-of-the-art facilities.
Innovate UK, part of UK Research and Innovation (UKRI), helps UK businesses to grow through the development and commercialisation of new products, processes, and services.