Five NHS Trusts – Buckinghamshire, Cambridgeshire, North West Anglia, Northampton and Shropshire – are now working with the ilarna platform. Through improved access to high‑quality support at home, an average of 100 hospital bed days per month are being released in each area.

ilarna works in partnership with NHS Trusts to support patient discharge by helping people who are medically fit to leave hospital access the right support at home. The model focuses on enabling safe, timely discharge while ensuring patients and families feel confident about the care arrangements in place.

The platform places experienced clinical discharge coordinators directly on NHS hospital sites, working alongside ward and discharge teams. With patient consent, they help identify appropriate home support – often within 24 to 48 hours – supporting people to return home safely while easing pressure on frontline services. The service is also delivering financial benefits, saving each  trust an average of £50,000 per month – equivalent to around £3 million a year across the five trusts.

Buckinghamshire Healthcare NHS Trust was the first trust to partner with ilarna and has been working with the platform for 15 months. Since November 2024, more than 1,300 hospital bed days have been released, helping patients to return home, with the right support around them.

Helen Griffith, Discharge Coordinator at Buckinghamshire Healthcare NHS Trust, said:

“Since the introduction of ilarna, our privately funded patients and their families have experienced a very positive and reassuring impact. The ilarna team works closely with patients, families, the Discharge Team and ward staff, ensuring people can return home in a timely, safe and stress‑free way.”

Alex Moran, Chief Executive Officer of ilarna, said:

“Every day we see people who are medically fit to leave hospital but unable to do so because the right support isn’t available when they need it. By helping people quickly connect with trusted support at home, we enable patients to recover where they want to be, while also reducing delays and supporting the NHS to focus its resources where they are needed most.”

ilarna uses modern technology to make it simpler for individuals and families to find, tailor and manage home support in one easy‑to‑use platform. Patients and families can choose their own ilarna Personal Assistants, giving them clarity and reassurance about who will be providing care in their home.

Unlike more traditional models of care, ilarna Personal Assistants are able to spend at least an hour with each client, allowing for more personalised, relationship‑based support. Families can select how many Personal Assistants they need based on their level of support, and know exactly who is attending each visit.

Personal Assistants log visits through the platform, and families receive an insights report following each home support session. This provides a clear overview of how someone is managing at home and helps identify any early signs of deterioration, enabling timely intervention and reducing the risk of avoidable hospital readmission.

As well as improving experiences for patients and families, the service is also helping to improve working conditions in social care.

ilarna’s self‑employed Personal Assistants set their own rates of pay, earning an average of £18 per hour, making social care a more attractive and sustainable career option. ilarna also signposts Personal Assistants to training partners, supporting skills development and progression within the sector.

ilarna hopes improved flexibility, pay and professional development will encourage more people to join or return to the care workforce, and plans to engage with schools and colleges to promote social care as a rewarding long‑term career choice.