Case Study: Advance Housing and Support

In Conversation with Diane Benden, Head of Operations South & Southwest.

The TouchByte team sit down with Diane Benden, Head of Operations for Advance Housing & Support, South & South West.

The team at Advance provide supported living facilities for those with a learning disability and mental health support needs. Diane and her team strongly believe in empowering and giving back autonomy to those who require additional support with day-to-day tasks. Advance have collaborated with TouchByte in implementing their face authentication product, Facentry, which provides safe, secure and convenient access control.

Can you tell us about the method of access control you were using prior to facial authentication?

“We were using a fingerprint entry system, which we thought at the time was amazing and cutting edge. But it wasn’t. It simply wasn’t because it didn’t work.

For one reason or another, we just couldn’t get it up and running. It wasn’t helpful at all. It felt like a constant struggle.

Then, I received the call to ask if I’d be interested in some new technology, Facentry. I thought: “Oh, this sounds quite good.” So, I jumped at the chance. It’s been amazing. I just love it. I’m absolutely a huge fan. I think it’s brilliant.

Facentry couldn’t have come at a better time, post-COVID. If we’re going to take positive out of COVID... It’s this technology. There were obviously lots of anxieties about touching surfaces and such like.

Not having to touch anything, just being able to just walk up freely to a door, and it recognises your face and opens it for you. Not having to think, you know, is my finger on the system properly, where are my keys, all those things.”

What do you feel are the most beneficial aspects of Facentry?

“The thing that I like most about it is its versatility.

Currently, we’re using [Facentry] with people who are able- bodied. They’re able to open a door on their own. But I foresee it being extremely useful for people who have physical disabilities. So, somebody who uses a wheelchair or somebody with autism, or has quite severe autism that wouldn’t have the ability or the understanding to touch a keypad or get a key out and that dexterity to put the proper key into a door.

I see it as really helpful for that. To give somebody back their own independence, and that nice little bit of skill. Why should somebody have to wait for a member of staff, or a family member, or somebody to open a door for them? They shouldn’t have to - it’s their house.

As an organisation, we promote that it is your own front door; it’s your house. We believe in that, 100%. Then, you say that it’s your house... but you can’t enter it without somebody else.

How lovely would that be to say: “it’s your house. You can open that door. You can choose who comes into your house, at any given point.” It’s perfect.

We’re all used to walking through a door. We’re all used to opening a door. So that skill and that automatic thing that you’ve learned, as an instinct, doesn’t fade. What does fade, is the ability to remember keycodes, or to retain the dexterity to put an actual key into a lock.”

What was you and your teams’ initial reaction to using facial authentication?

“Our staff are amazing. They’re an amazing team. They’re keen to try anything. They want the best for the people they work with. So, I’m really lucky with that staff team. You can give them anything. And they’ll say: “Yeah, we’ll try that.”

I wasn’t worried about [introducing Facentry] to the staff team. I was more worried about introducing Facentry to the people who live there. They have mental health support needs, and my concern was going to be whether they would like it.

I was worried about them thinking that big brother was watching, and I had a little bit of concern about where their data was being held and such like. But they absolutely took to it. They loved it. They probably took to it better than the staff! The people we support just walk up to the door, and it opens. They’re just not overthinking it. They love it. They absolutely love it.

Not having to think about “have I got my keys with me”, “have I lost my keys?”, or “what’s the code again?” The staff don’t have to come and answer the door anymore. It was brilliant how they just took to it – they absolutely love it.

I like the fact that their visitors can come, too. And nobody else needs to know. So, if they’ve got an appointment with their nurse, psychiatrist, or GP, that person can [be identified] as a regular visitor, a safe person that can come in and out. We know they’re coming. And they can just walk up to the door, and not even have to knock on a door to a communal space where other people are sitting and listening. They could just walk in and out – I love the privacy that that brings to someone’s life.”

You’ve mentioned giving back autonomy to residents, versatility for users, and the COVID-friendly nature of Facentry. Do you have any other thoughts on the technology?

“The bit that I love is the simplicity.

I attended a workshop, probably about two, it was pre- COVID. So, it’ll be over two years ago now. We were talking about technology, and you’ve got all these people from different backgrounds all sat around a table. They were asking, we were going around the table, what does technology mean to you? What do you want from technology?

They were all talking about having all these apps. It was wonderful. It sounded fantastic. Then it came around to me. And I said, “Well, I work with people with learning disabilities, who have physical limitations.

Technology now is about making everything smaller... and fiddlier. And you can see why, because everybody wants to put in their back pocket and they want lights and things, but I don’t need that.

The people that I’m representing today, they need something that’s nice and easy, and sometimes bigger. So, if it involves pressing a button, can you make that button quite big?” The realisation hit people - it was like a lightbulb moment for them. The whole table just hadn’t considered it from that perspective. That’s what I love about Facentry - the simplicity of it. You don’t even think about it. It just works.”

TouchByte are currently working alongside early adopters and commercial partners to install their Facentry technology across a variety of sectors. If you or your business would benefit from safe, secure, convenient access control, get in touch today to discuss your requirements.