Daniel has 17 years’ experience of delivering innovative digital projects tackling social exclusion in rural areas. He established the UK’s first co-operative to deliver broadband to remote rural areas. Recently he has been working with Dept Digital Culture Media Sport and Network Rail on a pilot project to deliver fibre optic broadband to a remote valley in Northumberland.
As well as working on transformational digital infrastructure, Daniel has pioneered the adoption of several digital services;
- The Cumbria telehealth project worked with the NHS and 40 patients with COPD and Chronic Heart Failure, supported by the Department of Health Social Enterprise Pathfinder initiative.
- PhysioDom – an EU project which provided dietary and exercise monitoring and coaching via a TV set top box for 150 over 65s. Participants reported better health and wellbeing, with one losing 28kg during the course of the project. Partners in the project were Age UK, local GPs, Wageningen University (NL), Viveris (F) and CST (Catalonia)
- The Breathe project supported informal carers by giving them greater peace of mind by installing a monitoring system in their loved ones home. A son could check on his mum and make sure she had boiled the kettle in the morning. Heat maps generated by cameras in the ceiling showed levels of activity during the day. Partners in the project were Innovate UK, Kingston University, Designability, Trinity College Dublin and Eden Independent Living.
One of Daniel’s strengths is an ability to deploy complex technical solutions working in partnership with Universities, public, private and 3rd sector organisations and get them to a stage of full deployment.
Innovate UK are funding Charge my Street, a new co-operative which Daniel is establishing, which provides communal electric vehicle charging points for residents without a driveway. The co-op uses empty parking spaces at community buildings for overnight charging and infrastructure is funded through community shares.
He was a Social Enterprise Ambassador for the Cabinet Office and is passionate about using disruptive technology to deliver innovative local solutions. He is Vice Chair of Cumbria Social Enterprise Partnership and sits on the Advisory Panel for Cumbria LEP.