The voice of a trade association or independent trade body is often the most powerful, trusted and prominent voice on issues troubling the public sector or its suppliers.
Where one lone voice can be ignored or overlooked, a trade association carries the support of multiple voices and can often shift and shape whole industries.
As a supplier, joining a trade association is often one of the simplest ways of making a positive impact on the markets you are trying to reach. We’ve put together a list of 20 trade associations to connect with and consider supporting or joining in 2020:
The Association of British Health Tech Industries helps to shape the health tech industry, and helps show the value of health technology in overcoming the barriers to people benefitting from it now and in the future. The association represents the health tech industry to key stakeholders such as governments, healthcare systems and regulators.
APHA is an organisation aiming to raise the profile of healthcare analysts and provide a professional support network. It aims to drive up the quality of analytics as an aid to evidence-based decision-making in a modern health and care system. The organisation also aims to support the NHS strategy and vision by providing knowledge and insight to encourage better decision making.
Dr Foster
Dr Foster is an independent voice and credible association for the healthcare sector. The organisation works with Imperial College London by using healthcare data to help the NHS make decisions about operations and services. Dr Foster targets three main areas: population health management, cost and efficiency, and the measurement of quality and outcomes.
Health Tech Alliance
The Health Tech Alliance is an informal coalition of health tech companies working to drive forward the adoption of health technologies, devices, and diagnostics that are proven to benefit patient outcomes and deliver cost savings to the NHS. Other aims for the organisation are to raise the profile of health technologies and diagnostics and to promote opportunities for the sector.
LOCAL GOVERNMENT
APSE – Association for Public Service Excellence
APSE is the association for public service excellence, a networking community that assists local authorities that are striving to improve their frontline services. APSE works with more than 250 local authorities across the UK to advise and share expertise on a broad range of frontline public services.
EDUCATION
BESA – British educational suppliers association
The British Educational Suppliers Association is an association covering the entirety of the UK educational suppliers sector. BESA has been serving the UK education sector for the last 85 years and represents over 300 educational suppliers in the UK, including manufacturers and distributors of equipment, materials, books, consumables, furniture, technology, ICT hardware and EdTech to the education market.
D&T – design and technology association
The design and technology association aims to provide opportunities for students to develop their capabilities, combining their designing and making skills with knowledge and understanding in order to create quality products. D&T work across primary and secondary education with a membership of over 6,000.
Naace – The Education Technology Association
Naace is a community of teachers, school leaders, advisors, consultants and commercial partners working across all areas of UK education who share the same vision for the developing role of technology in education. As an association, Naace represents the voice of the UK education technology community in the schooling sector at a national and international level. Supporting individuals and groups throughout the education landscape by providing resources for courses and research, as well as encouraging reflection and professional development.
The Association for Learning Technology (ALT)
The Association for Learning Technology represents individual and organisational members from all sectors and parts of the UK. The membership includes practitioners, researchers and policy makers with an interest in learning technology. The subscription is growing more diverse as learning technology has become recognised as a fundamental part of learning, teaching, and assessment.
The Education Foundation
The Education Foundation is a leading organisation set up to accelerate and support positive change in the British education system and beyond. The foundation has an experienced group of advisors who help, support, and advise the Education Foundation and EdTech UK in their work. The foundation’s work covers education reform, technology and innovation as well as commissioned research and reports that the organisation produces.
The ETA – The Education Technology Association
The main ethos of the education technology is association is to enable all learners to thrive, achieve, and contribute to the increasingly digital culture within society. Its mission is to create an engagement platform or central place that provides the knowledge, tools, and shared practice to equip educators to improve the teaching and learning of their students through the effective use of appropriate EdTech.
SOCIAL CARE
ADASS – the association of directors of adult social services in England
ADASS is an association and charity that aims to further the interests of people in need of social care by promoting high standards of social care services and influencing the development of social care legislation and policy. The membership is drawn from serving directors of adult social care employed by local authorities. Associate members are past directors and our wider membership includes deputy and assistant directors. In 2019, membership was extended to principal social workers.
Bata – British assistive technology association
As an association, BATA campaigns for the rights and interests of those needing assistive technology, providing expert impartial support to government departments and agencies. BATA members are suppliers, AT professionals and organisations who provide support to individuals with disabilities who need assistive technology solutions. BATA provides an information and signposting service to the public in directing enquiries to relevant members and other relevant groups/organisations.
Digital Social Care
Digital Social Care is run by social care providers, for social care providers. The organisation works in partnership with NHS Digital to support the digital journey of social care providers. Digital Social Care is a dedicated space to provide advice and support to the sector on technology and data protection.
Tech For Care
Tech For Care is the first and only UK review, comparison and product listing website dedicated to the software and innovative technologies used in health and social care. Tech For Care’s platform allows software and technology companies to list their products on a single database, which is a free listing subscription for all known software and technologies used in care.
SCIE – social care institute for excellence
The social care institute for excellence aims to improve the lives of people of all ages by co-producing, sharing, and supporting the use of the best available knowledge and evidence about what works in practice. The organisation is independent and people-focused, operating at policy and practice levels with a huge database of best practice examples, eLearning tools, and resources. Working beyond and across social care and health and children’s and adults’ sectors, SCIE contribute to the development and implementation of better care, support and safeguarding at national and local level.
TSA Voice
TSA Voice is the voice of care tech providers, working on behalf of and advising organisations including: telecare and telehealth providers, suppliers, housing associations, care providers, emergency services, academia, charities, government bodies and health and social care commissioners.
CROSS PUBLIC SECTOR
Socitm – society for innovation, technology and modernisation
Socitm is the society for innovation, technology and modernisation. Its vision is to be the preferred network for professionals who are shaping and delivering public services. Its members benefit from being part of a growing community where collaboration is key. Through its events and resources, it brings people together to share experiences and best practice. Established for over 30 years, it continues to challenge convention, inspire change and power progress. Through its unique Leadership Academy, it is also developing a new paradigm of leadership where talent is harnessed and nurtured and diversity and resilience are championed and promoted.
UKITA – UK IT Association
UKITA works with 95% of businesses in the UK tech, IT and digital sectors that employ between 1 and 250 employees. UKITA supports public sector bodies and higher education with collaboration and delivery of funded projects and input to bids. The organisation aims to help businesses to make better buying decisions and connect IT companies with buying organisations.
Innopsis
Innopsis is the industry association for suppliers of digital infrastructure and services to the UK public sector. Collectively, the organisation provides over 75% of the telecoms and digital infrastructure used by the UK public sector, helping its members to do business with government by working closely with Crown Commercial Services (CCS) to discuss public sector procurement.
