Season

4

Episode

8

28 May 2026

Voices of Care.

Dr Jane Townson OBE, Raina Summerson, Sharon Lowrie, and Dr Trudie Fell

Season

4

Episode

8

28 May 2026

Voices of Care.

Dr Jane Townson OBE, Raina Summerson, Sharon Lowrie, and Dr Trudie Fell

4 national leaders discuss the future of Homecare, Tech and Fair Funding and Commissioning and present opportunity to truly value the sector's workforce.

"Homecare should be seen as essential national infrastructure, not as a peripheral optional extra"

Dr Jane Townson OBE, Raina Summerson, Sharon Lowrie, and Dr Trudie Fell

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Homecare’s time has come.”

That was the powerful message from the latest #VoicesOfCare episode, recorded live at the Homecare Association Annual Conference at The Oval, hosted by M. Suhail Mirza.

In a wide-ranging conversation with Dr Jane Townson, Dr Trudie Fell, Sharon Lowrie and Raina Summerson, one message came through clearly: homecare is not a peripheral part of the health and care system — it is "essential national infrastructure". A timely message for our new Health and Social Care Secretary!

  • Dr Jane Townson OBE captured the national moment: “There are three shifts that the government talked about — from hospital to community, treatment to prevention, analogue to digital. All of those three are precisely where homecare sits.”

  • Sharon Lowrie made the workforce challenge impossible to ignore: “People don’t leave home care because they don’t like their role. They leave because they want a regular income.

  • Raina Summerson challenged the language of burden around social care: “Older people aren’t a burden. People who are sick aren’t a burden. As a society, we should want to celebrate how we care and support people when they need us.”

  • Dr Trudie Fell showed what innovation can look like when it is grounded in purpose, people and technology: “Technology, including AI, can enable people to do the things that people do best — which is build human relationships.”

Together, the conversation explored the future of home care, workforce sustainability, fair pay, immigration policy, commissioning, regulation, technology, AI and the urgent need to value care workers properly.

The question is no longer whether homecare matters.

The question is whether policymakers (including the new Health and Social Care Secretary), commissioners and the wider health system are ready to treat it as central to the future of the NHS, prevention, neighbourhood health and independent living.

Homecare’s time has come.”

That was the powerful message from the latest #VoicesOfCare episode, recorded live at the Homecare Association Annual Conference at The Oval, hosted by M. Suhail Mirza.

In a wide-ranging conversation with Dr Jane Townson, Dr Trudie Fell, Sharon Lowrie and Raina Summerson, one message came through clearly: homecare is not a peripheral part of the health and care system — it is "essential national infrastructure". A timely message for our new Health and Social Care Secretary!

  • Dr Jane Townson OBE captured the national moment: “There are three shifts that the government talked about — from hospital to community, treatment to prevention, analogue to digital. All of those three are precisely where homecare sits.”

  • Sharon Lowrie made the workforce challenge impossible to ignore: “People don’t leave home care because they don’t like their role. They leave because they want a regular income.

  • Raina Summerson challenged the language of burden around social care: “Older people aren’t a burden. People who are sick aren’t a burden. As a society, we should want to celebrate how we care and support people when they need us.”

  • Dr Trudie Fell showed what innovation can look like when it is grounded in purpose, people and technology: “Technology, including AI, can enable people to do the things that people do best — which is build human relationships.”

Together, the conversation explored the future of home care, workforce sustainability, fair pay, immigration policy, commissioning, regulation, technology, AI and the urgent need to value care workers properly.

The question is no longer whether homecare matters.

The question is whether policymakers (including the new Health and Social Care Secretary), commissioners and the wider health system are ready to treat it as central to the future of the NHS, prevention, neighbourhood health and independent living.

The Voices of Care Podcast.

Don't miss our latest episodes.

We bring together the leaders and innovators of the care industry, who aren't afraid to say it - and fix it. Get insider truths on the uncomfortable questions - no filter, no spin. Hear the bold ideas and radical thinking on what care could, and should be.

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Dr Jane Townson OBE, Raina Summerson, Sharon Lowrie, and Dr Trudie Fell

4 national leaders discuss the future of Homecare, Tech and Fair Funding and Commissioning and present opportunity to truly value the sector's workforce.

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Richard Washington and Philip Luce

The NHS can't do it alone. Bupa's Richard Washington and Philip Luce on why collaboration is the only answer.

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William Roberts

Many commentators decry the "nanny state" yet a clear message from William Roberts, CEO at the Royal Society for Public Health, in our latest Voices of Care podcast challenges this narrative.

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Professor Martin Green, Rebekah Cresswell, Andrea Kincade, Peter Kinsey, Tim Davies and Nuno Lopes

As official podcast partners to the Care England Annual Conference we are delighted to share the latest Voices of Care episode featuring 7 leaders from the sector; a golden thread running through this episode (echoing the "Stand by me" theme of the Conference ) is the call for the sector to unite and be recognised for its contribution.

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Bill Morgan - Senior Partner at Newmarket Strategy,  Sarah Woolnough - CEO of the King's Fund and Maria Tereno - Managing Director for Boehringer Ingelheim UK and Ireland.

Voices of Care podcast brings together three leading voices to assess whether the UK can truly become the world's third largest life sciences economy in the next decade and how policymakers can leverage healthcare as a driver of economic growth and launch platform for new medicines for patients.Declaration of involvement: Boehringer did not fund or commission this podcast and had no editorial control over its content or any related materials. The podcast was checked for factual inaccuracies only

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Professor Oonagh Smyth CBE

Fresh from a CBE and securing a new three-year government contract, Oonagh reflects on what the latest annual workforce report really tells us:

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Rukshana Kapasi OBE

Barnardo's Director of Health, calls for measurable accountability in government's ambition to create "healthiest generation of children" and urges neighbourhood health models to truly partner with voluntary sector 

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Duncan Burton and Karen Bonner

In this episode of Voices of Care, Duncan Burton, Chief Nursing Officer for England, and Karen Bonner, Chief Nurse for London, discuss the pressures facing the nursing profession and their vision for its future.

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Helen Dent

The NHS is imposing "huge costs on itself" through outdated funding practices that are simultaneously draining budgets and blocking access to innovative diagnostic technologies, according to Helen Dent, Chief Executive of the British In Vitro Diagnostics Association (BIVDA), speaking on Newcross Healthcare's Voices of Care podcast with host Suhail Mirza. 

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Ben Travis

Ben Travis, Chief Executive of Lewisham and Greenwich NHS Trust (LGT), has opened up about the remarkable transformation journey of a Trust born from one of the most controversial episodes in NHS history, speaking on Newcross Healthcare's Voices of Care podcast with host Suhail Mirza.

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Whatever your enquiry, our team is ready to assist. From care services and partnership opportunities to media requests and general questions - simply fill in the form below and we'll get back to you promptly. HealthForce If you require urgent staffing 0330 054 5570 Community Care For care at home services 0330 054 1110 Existing Newcross Healthcare worker 0330 054 5577

Say hello 👋

We’d love to hear from you.

Whatever your enquiry, our team is ready to assist. From care services and partnership opportunities to media requests and general questions - simply fill in the form below and we'll get back to you promptly. HealthForce If you require urgent staffing 0330 054 5570 Community Care For care at home services 0330 054 1110 Existing Newcross Healthcare worker 0330 054 5577

Say hello 👋

We’d love to hear from you.

Whatever your enquiry, our team is ready to assist. From care services and partnership opportunities to media requests and general questions - simply fill in the form below and we'll get back to you promptly. HealthForce If you require urgent staffing 0330 054 5570 Community Care For care at home services 0330 054 1110 Existing Newcross Healthcare worker 0330 054 5577

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