Reimagine Ageing and Later Life in a Digitally Enabled World: A Workshop to Look to the Future

Are you ready to challenge the traditional narrative of aging and later life? Join us for a thought-provoking workshop where we'll explore new possibilities for a fulfilling and vibrant time of our lives. 

Open to healthcare professionals working with digital technology and innovation, people working in health tech or health and social care industry, academics and the general public. 

The workshop aims to: 

• Inspire participants to think about the potential of participatory methods to involve everyone in the design of our collective futures
• Encourage people to challenge the pre-conceived ideas of ageing and make a claim on a future life of thriving not perishing

Lead by Sparck and St Monica Trust

Workshop schedule

13:00 - 16:00 - Workshop (full timings to be confirmed)

16:00 - 17:00 - Networking (optional)

About the workshop

The landscape of aging is rapidly changing; with increasing life expectancy, shifts in societal norms and technology advancement. We have an unprecedented opportunity to reimagine what it means to grow old and the role of technology in supporting a flourishing life.

Through interactive discussions, creative exercises, and expert insights, we'll imagine and design a future where older age is a time of growth, innovation, and empowerment, focusing on the role of digital technology to support this new paradigm.

What to expect:

• Engaging group discussions to share ideas and perspectives
• Collaborative design sessions to imagine innovative ideas
• Networking opportunities to connect with like-minded individuals
  

About the workshop leads

Terry Dixon

Terry is on the leadership team of Sparck, the Human Centred Design arm of CGI, and focusses on the role of design to help us solve some of the biggest challenges we, society, and our planet face. Increasingly Terry’s role is to help organisations think longer-term about the systems and impacts of their products and services, playing a part in building a better world from today.

Matt Mullan 

Matt leads Strategic Foresight at Sparck, helping organisations anticipate disruption and unlock long-term value at the intersection of AI, biotech, and digital health. With a background in systems engineering and innovation, he brings a futures-led, design-driven approach to navigating complexity, shaping strategy, and fostering ethical decision-making.

Kate Potts

Kate is a Senior Service Designer at Sparck working in the design industry with an MA in Design - Sustainable Change. Kate is passionate about the power of design as a tool for social change, the potential design has to empower communities and create outcomes that benefit people and place.

Paul Tisdale

Paul is Director of Innovation at St Monica Trust, where he is reimagining how we age by developing smarter, more connected models of care and independent living. He believes digital health should go beyond monitoring to actively support people to live well, with joy, purpose and connection.

Sean Davey 

Sean is Innovation Manager at St Monica Trust. Blending together insight and imagination, Sean’s at his best taking things apart and finding interesting new ways to put them back together again. Sean has run projects for global medtech companies and FTSE100s; local schools and colleges; innovative start-ups and long-established financial institutions.

Jessica Vallentine

Jessica Vallentine is a collaborative senior executive with a track record in systems innovation and citizen engagement. She has been creating positive impact through business and community development for the last 20 years, in roles across the private, public and third sector, recently joining Community Energy England as COO.

Booking a place

This is an in-person workshop

Reimagine Ageing and Later Life in a Digitally Enabled World: A Workshop to Look to the Future is lead by SPARCK and St Monica Trust and hosted by the University of Bristol

Festival of Digital Health 

The Festival of Digital Health runs from Monday 30 June - Friday 4 July 2025. Taking place across the South West of England and Wales, it will be a dynamic week of events, showcasing how digital technologies are transforming the way we think about, deliver, and experience health and care.

Whether you’re a digital health professional, a healthcare provider, a researcher, a tech enthusiast, or simply curious about how technology is shaping the future of care — this festival is for you. 

In-person events will take place in Bath, Bristol, Cardiff and Exeter. For the full programme please visit: Festival of Digital Health programme