North of Tyne health tech company secures £1.3m investment fund

Circadacare, a Newcastle-based health tech company specialising in circadian lighting, has raised £1.3m in funding. The funding will be used to launch their remote-monitoring product, Heleos, into the independent living care market.

The funding round was led by the North East Innovation Fund, with contributions from Innovate UK, private investors and a prize fund from Longitude Prize on Dementia.

Health Innovation North East North Cumbria (HI NENC) has been supporting Circadacare, as they develop their innovative, remote monitoring solution. Heleos is a non-invasive device that combines light technology and AI monitoring, to significantly improve the lives and care of elderly people and those living with dementia.

Improving care for an aging population

As people in England live longer than ever before, the amount of older people in our population is growing significantly. The number of people over 60 is expected to increase from 14.9 million in 2014 to 18.5 million in 2025.

As the population ages, more people are living with long-term health conditions, creating extra demand on our health and care services. It is estimated that 75% of 75-year-olds in the UK have one or more long-term conditions and by 2030, the number of people with dementia in the UK will be more than 1 million. Technology that can improve the care provided to older people as well as their general well-being, has never been more important.

Circadian lighting has been proven to regulate sleep patterns and improve mood and alertness. People living with dementia can often get confused and frustrated at dusk, a symptom known as ‘sundowning’. Circadacare’s innovative technology can alleviate sundowning and the agitated behaviour it leads to.

In older people falls can be more common, with half of people over 80 having at least one fall a year. Although not all falls lead to serious injury, they can affect confidence and cause a person to feel a loss of independence. Circadacare found up to a 43% reduction in falls for older adults benefitting from circadian-supportive lighting.

Circadacare’s Heleos uses AI-powered monitoring to help detect early warning signs and changes, enabling better and more personalised care for older people.

The device can be used in residential care homes or the homes of elderly people living alone. Circadacare aims to help support the care sector, namely Local Authorities, to become tech enabled and keep informed on service users who may or may not need hands-on support from care professionals.

James Theobald, Founder of Circadacare, said: “This funding and award will help us to continue our mission of helping individuals live independently for longer. By harnessing the combined potential of circadian light technology and advanced AI monitoring we can deliver top-tier independent living solutions.”

Supporting health and care innovators

HI NENC has supported Circadacare since late 2022 by helping them navigate the NHS and develop a better understanding of digital procurement within social care. This has involved brokering relationships within different local authorities and providing the opportunity to ask Commissioning Managers the right questions to support the development roadmap of Heleos. Circadacare have also benefitted from attending one to one workshops on digital compliance in the NHS and business strategy.

Ben Porter, Programme Manager, HI NENC said: “We have supported Circadacare as part of the North of Tyne Digital Cluster. We support businesses across the North of Tyne area with targeted support to help them launch digital innovations in health and care. We work with innovators across the region (not just in North of Tyne) to help them connect with the NHS and care sector and it has been a pleasure to support Circadacare with expanding their business.”

 

Tallie Bush, Product Director, Circadacare said: “HI NENC have helped us navigate the complex world of the NHS and ICB networks to understand everything from procurement and regulatory compliance to business strategy. With their support and connections, we have grown in the confidence and knowledge required for our business to succeed in this highly diverse and ever-changing market space.

“We’re excited about what the future holds for Circadacare and are committed to continuing to develop our technology so that it enables the delivery of effective care for everyone in need of support.”