Scope / BT Connect to Control “How we can do the bells and whistles” Rohan Slaughter 17/9/13

How we can do the bells and whistles This presentation will cover: How students at Beaumont College are using AAC devices / tablet PC’s for purposes other than talking The team structure and approaches that we have developed to support this activity The projects we have worked on that have enabled us to develop both the team and this way of working Connect to Control Jisc DART2 The difference this approach makes

Brief overview of Beaumont College Scope run Independent Specialist College (ISC) based in Lancaster 96 learners in Lancaster, two satellite provisions with ~20 learners 330 FTE staff Ofsted “Outstanding” LSIS Beacon Status Curriculum focussed on personal development, independence, skills for life Creative arts specialism

The Scope / BT relationship BT and Scope have been working together for some years. The first project Beaumont College worked on with BT was the Wheeltop Project and the sister project ‘No Voice No Choice’. Wheeltop was about using off the shelf tablet PC’s in place of dedicated devices, it also enabled us to develop our assistive technologist role Connect to Control aims to: investigate the divide between mainstream and specialist ‘disability badged’ Environmental Control Systems (ECS) identify ‘best in breed’ technologies prototype combining mainstream and specialist assistive technology Disseminate findings and create a fully inclusive society

Communication beyond talking Why provide access to these ‘extra’ applications: Most importantly students want these additional applications, using them is ‘normal’ We mean to make our curriculum as accessible as possible, this has to involve technology mediated access for many students at Beaumont We recognise that in order to promote independence skills that assistive technology has an vital role to play for our students It’s also easier to do than ever before, and accessibility of mainstream equipment and services is improving year on year

Communication beyond talking What we are talking about then is: Access to the curriculum through: Control of standard computer software Access to subject specific vocab Control of subject specific equipment Internet access, , SMS, voice calls, Skype etc. Social networking such as Facebook, Twitter etc. Good e-safety processes Control of the environment (Environmental Control Systems, ECS)

Communication beyond talking

Definition of the Assistive Technologist The title ‘assistive technologist’ (AT) has a number of different interpretations: One is Clinical, and refers to ‘clinical rehab engineers’ This is common in the NHS Beaumont College and the DART project uses a somewhat different definition: If anyone wants the sample job description, person spec and role profile please contact me This job is more education focussed, and as such the post holders: Ideally should have a teaching qualification, minimum 7307/7407/PTTLS or equivalent, and preferably a PGCE/cert ed Be educated to degree level in an IT related subject or have equivalent skills and knowledge gained from a suitable setting We want ‘people’ people who are technically literate

Definition of the Assistive Technologist The Assistive Technologist This role was developed during the Wheeltop Project at Beaumont College Funded by BT from Integrate off the shelf Tablet PC technology in place of dedicated communication aids Reduced the cost of the hardware and increased flexibility of solutions The technologist role was the most important development from the Wheeltop Project

Definition of the Assistive Technologist The Assistive Technologist Sits at the interface of people and technology Works as part of a trans-disciplinary team, which includes OT, SLT, teachers, social care staff A new ‘hybrid’ role that does not replace any existing role The technologist becomes the ‘chief integrator’ of the assistive technology solution provided to the student

Definition of the Assistive Technologist

How the Assistive Technologist works at BC Caseload allocation, all students have a named technologist Each technologist is allocated a number of teachers/sessions to support Preparation of resources for SLT / Teachers, that could be student specific or subject specific Implementation of bespoke or customised hardware and software solutions Research and development in line with all of the above Project work (more soon)

The AAC Community Of Practice (AAC COP) Is made up of: Speech and Language Therapists, Occupational Therapists, Physiotherapists, Teachers, Technologists Meets every two weeks for: Case discussions, problem solving etc. New technology discussions Other matters arising

Examples of Project Work These externally funded projects are what make it possible to maintain the size of the technology team at Beaumont College By undertaking such projects we further push our knowledge and understanding and through positive engagement with other providers we see good practice in other contexts I would like to give an overview of two projects: The Second BT Project: Connect to Control Mind the Digital Gap The JISC Advance Funded DART2 project

Connect to Control Technology Development project ‘Connect to Control’ led from Scope’s Beaumont College Installation of Environmental Control Systems from the age and disability market Development of low cost alternatives, using home automation / smart home technology The key to this has been the development of a software bridge to control a number of radio ‘standards’ We have also used ‘off the shelf’ technology such as ‘LightwaveRF’, which is available from Amazon – with little or no adaptation For people with complex disabilities there is still a need for some specialised access equipment We are also working on a number of allied projects

Mind the Digital Gap Research Project led by Rob Trotter, Policy and govt. affairs ‘Mind the Digital Gap’ Questions: Why is there a ‘digital divide’? What would a fully inclusive digital world look like? Answers: Partnership with Helen Hamlyn Centre for Design Research Associates scheme Interim report has been delivered and the design of ‘products’ now underway

Connect to Control Prototype system in use at Beaumont:

Focus on Environmental Control Systems (ECS) Evaluate ECS from age and disability market and smart-home and home automation market Connect to Control Age and disability marketSmart-home / home automation Typically high cost Typically lower cost Manufacturer lock in Use standards based approaches and protocols Out of date approaches Use leading edge technology Highly accessible design Often not truly accessible

Laying Foundations – we needed to understand the current market offer Selected RSL Steeper – because they have taken a systems integration approach and are already looking at the integration of Student Consultations – targeted the areas that students most wanted to achieve first Installed seven RSL Steeper systems at College and in a local community setting Each student has a different custom access method to control their ECS Year 1

Year 2 Training programs for students were further developed and additional systems were installed Developed Vera2 z-wave control system into a ‘demo room’ from the original ‘desk based prototype’ Investigated additional control standard capabilities beyond z-wave (added lightwaveRF and IP camera control) Worked with BBC R&D team on switch accessible prototype set top box, and began working with YouView Influence market through partnership working, including BT, Lancaster University, SmartboxAT and BBC R&D Begin to identify year three students

Connect to Control Prototype system in use at Beaumont:

Work has centered on two low cost platforms: Z-wave gateway from MiCaseVerde ‘Vera2’ LightwaveRF ‘wi-fi’ bridge Both systems can now be activated from a number of devices, including any running The Grid 2 A simple web based front end has been created The logic is contained in a number of web services that can be called by a web application or via PHP scripts A database is used to manage the actuators and make setup of the system easier Current Work at Beaumont College /Lancaster Uni

Research – MRES process Literature review – use of smart home derived ECS Built a prototype system as described Tested the prototype system with a small number of students at Beaumont Used a combination of the SUS scale and qualitative questions to get feedback on the prototype Interviewed a number of people active in assistive technology and ECS in order to get a wider view Project guided by four questions...

Research – MRES questions 1. Can the author adapt environmental control systems (ECS) from the ‘smart home’ / ‘home automation’ market for use by people with physical and cognitive disabilities? 2. Are such ‘adapted’ systems suitable for use within the context of an Independent Specialist College? 3.What is the current state of the ECS market for use by disabled people? 4. Are the ‘age and disability’ and ‘home-automation’ ECS markets converging?

Year 3 Planning Continue systems development: Develop a ‘packaged’ version of the system to include: Web server running web services To address the z-wave gateway To address lightwaveRF based devices improved web application An improved setup and admin application (to manage the database) Continue to evaluate systems from other companies (Possum Qwayo, DJ Rehab / Abilia) Continue to work with BBC R&D, YouView switch / alternate access system Working with Therapy Box who won the TSB/Scope challenge Lancaster University alternate input devices such as Leap Motion Kinect

The DART project(s) 2010/12 DART1, an LSIS funded project Beaumont College and National Star College worked with 8 colleges, in a ‘deep support’ capacity Beaumont and Star are ISC’s : Independent Specialist Colleges One of those DART1 colleges was Henshaws Now we are running DART2, a JISC Advance funded project: Beaumont College, National Star College, Henshaws College, Colleges Scotland, NATSPEC, JISC all working together 10 deep support colleges, 2 in Scotland 3 workshops, delivered twice, once in Birmingham, once in Stirling

DART2 The DART project seeks to: Improve AT practice in the sector Enable the replication of the innovative Assistive Technologist role Produce AT case studies for the sector The project is achieving this through: ‘Deep Support’ for ten providers A Workshop series A Natspec sponsored research project

Deep Support Following an application and shortlisting process that was overseen by JISC TechDis 10 Colleges were selected Applications for the ‘deep support’ element were heavily oversubscribed, with approximately three times more applications than places available This indicates that there is a large unmet need in the sector. Unsuccessful applicants received priority booking for the workshop series. After the priority booking period, places will are allocated on a first come, first served basis

Deep Support Beaumont College to Support: Bridge College Myerscough College Kilmarnock College Edinburgh College National Star College to Support Derwen College Homefield College Queen Alexandra College Henshaws College to support: Landmarks College Percy Hedley College Royal College (Seashell Trust)

Workshops Day 1: Assessment for Assistive Technology Feb 2013 Slides from the events: Day 2: Creating the Assistive Technologist role and it’s integration into a College structure, April Slides from the events: Day 3: Specific Assistive Technology software training, June 2013 Slides from the events:

Natspec Research Project The Natspec sponsored research project (publication pending, expected shortly) was conducted via online questionnaire / telephone follow up, and sought to: Inform the content of the workshops (give the sector what it required in terms of AT related CPD) Define key themes around what is working well (or what is not working well) with respect to Assistive Technology in all types of FE College For more information please see

College structure and relationships between teams The technology strategy in a College stands or falls based on: Relationships between teams The College Structure Relationship of the IT/Technology team with: Teachers Therapists (where present) Supporting staff People in the AT role

Impact We have used income from projects / grants / consultancy etc. to build the service described today The assistive technologist role that works within the context of the AAC COP trans-disciplinary team model has had a significant impact on service delivery This is evidenced in our Ofsted reports: “Since the inspection, the college has increased further the priority it gives to the use of technology to support learning. Technology specialists have an allocated number of learners to work with and they spend more time in the classroom to ensure that maximum benefit is derived from the equipment.” Ofsted 2012 Improved OTL grades Feedback from both students and staff has been good In short we can most certainly provide the ‘bells and whistles’ through the service described today And we are now assisting others to do just that through projects such as DART and it’s successors

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