Amanda Britain

About

Amanda, a housing professional and experienced non executive director, sees ‘home’ as the foundation to people’s life chances - educational attainment, employment opportunities and health & wellbeing – as well as providing shelter and security. She has spent most of her career ‘joining the dots’ between housing, health, and social care – and more recently digital technology.

Amanda has been in the forefront for many decades in shaping thinking about housing’s contribution to people’s wellbeing. She has worked in some of the most underserved communities in Scotland, pioneering new inclusive and community controlled services that have been widely adopted. Her research company authored many reports for Government and local authorities, shaping national policy and informing local housing and support strategies across Scotland. In national roles or as a consultant, she has been pivotal to the development of new approaches to strategic planning, community care, older people’s housing and digital inclusion.

Amanda is currently working with two of Scotland’s innovation centres, DHI (health& care) and BE-ST (built environment) to create a digital blueprint for a smart home of the future, building on initiatives in Scotland and internationally. She is a board member of Capability Scotland and chairs its Finance, Audit and Resources Committee. She is a past chair of the Chartered Institute of Housing in Scotland, of Iriss, a research and innovation company, and until 2024 was the Scotland member of Ofcom’s Communications Consumer Panel. She has been a member, or chair, of at least 10 boards working in different sectors, some large and some small, some national and others local.

My Pledge

A good home in a supportive and connected community is the foundation for our wellbeing, particularly as we get older. But too often we work in sector and national silos failing to recognize the huge benefits of working together. Age Irrelevance, with its bold ambitions and ambassadors and change makers from across the UK, brings new perspectives and fresh thinking to how we use the talents, energy and experience of older people and genuinely create a society in which age is irrelevant.

We have a strong record in Scotland of innovating in this area – not always getting it right but trying different approaches and learning in the process. I look forward to sharing my knowledge and understanding of Scotland’s initiatives in housing, health, social care and digital technology and working with partners from different backgrounds to challenge, support and encourage us to deliver that better future.