As part of the MobileAge project I co-ran a series of workshops and user engagement activities in Kendal, UK to understand older adults relationships with technology and begin a blended co-creation and action-research project.
As a User Researcher I co-facilitated workshops with colleagues from Lancaster University. The activities included:
- a show and tell session from colleagues who had previously ran action-research design sprints
- an open space held for the community to share their experiences around digital technology and their needs for independent living.
The workshop organically shifted into a technology help session with attendees asking questions about their smartphones, banking apps and tablets.
This project formed part of the discovery work conducted during the EU funded MobileAge project, looking to co-create digital platforms and policy to support independent living with older adults.
Outcomes:
- Relationship building with senior council stakeholders
- Participant recruitment for action-research and co-creation
- Initial case studies of digital technology use in the context of independent living
- Examples of where local services and rapidly evolving tech were failing to meet the needs of older adults
- Reflections on how to recruit and promote for future user research sessions