For those following Georgia's journey, earlier this year she fractured her ankle in three places after a fall, requiring emergency surgery. Recovery was progressing, until her body began struggling to accept the metalwork from that surgery. Here's what happened recently.

Three things stopped me in my tracks this weekend on a trip to Boyle, County Roscommon: Collective pride, love in motion, and Matilda, in the red party dress. Let me explain.

This week, watching Moville Festival come to life, I was reminded of something technology can never replace: community. A new committee, old traditions, and a shared ambition to bring people together. It got me thinking about how inCharge was built, and why community development, not technology, has always been the starting point.

inCharge, the personalised care technology company founded by Karen McCormick, has expanded its product offering with the successful launch of a new provider-focused platform for Spraoi agus Spórt.

Everywhere I go, I hear the same conversations. Social care needs to change. We need more personalised support. We need better outcomes. We need to embrace technology. We need to do things differently. The urgency is real. The challenges are well understood. The desire for change is widespread. And yet, despite all of that, what many of us experience isn’t resistance. It’s inertia.

Our Super Users are exactly that: super important to us. They are the founding families of the inCharge community, the people who believed in what we were building long before it was polished, perfect, or even fully functioning. I’ve had the privilege of meeting some of our Super Users in person including Meabh and her parents in beautiful Culdaff, at Hoist Away.

I recently took part in the Inclusion Ireland Family Connect Conversation online, talking about “emerging adulthood” and the move from school age into adult services. I gave an honest reflection and I hope one that many families relate to, whether disability is part of their lives or not.

Because messaging apps are just for chat. inCharge is built for care. Most families coordinating care are juggling multiple tools – messaging apps, spreadsheets, notebooks. It works until it doesn't. inCharge is different. It brings clarity, continuity, and person-centred care together in one place.

We've had so many people asking how recovery is going – Georgia's fractured ankle, and my new hip. Four weeks on, Georgia's running. I'm on one crutch. We're finding our rhythm again. By chance, we were both recently scheduled for outpatient appointments on the same day. Here’s what we found.

I found myself back in the orthopaedic ward – but this time as the patient, not Georgia's mum. What I've learned is that founders and carers have more in common than we realise. Both become very practiced at carrying on until life insists we pause. For now, learning to accept care rather than organise it is the lesson.

I just caught up with Sarah Kelliher, UX designer with Xwerx and our design partner on inCharge, to take a first look at the newly enhanced personal profile in the app. Not only has that process been a translation of my research, lived and learned experiences, Sarah has carefully, thoughtfully and creatively translated people’s insights into intuitive and accessible designs.

Friday started like any other day. Then Georgia took a tumble, and everything shifted. What happened next – the ambulance ride, the hospital, the fractures, the surgery ahead – taught me something about emergency services, about our community, and about why the tools families use to share information matter more than we realise.

In 2020, during lockdown, my family and I took a trip to Rathlin Island. We went to sail – something accessible for all of us, where everyone belongs. During a solitary walk along the shore, with nothing but the sound of the sea and my thoughts, an idea was born.

This is the story of how inCharge started.

inCharge partnered with Gobby, a lived-experience research tool, to gather real insights from the people who make self-directed supports actually work: family members, paid supporters, and wider support teams. Here’s what we found.

January is normally a slow month for me. Over the years of working with inCharge, I've learned to accept that and lean into it - catching up on things I didn't get to, planning ahead, taking stock. But wow, this month has been completely different. Local authorities are reaching out. Co-design sessions are bringing the person's view to life. There's a definite appetite for doing things differently.

In the weeks leading up to Christmas, many families managing self-directed care were already holding their breath: payroll dates, holiday pay, whether there would be enough cover. Christmas came and went, but the strain didn't lift. Snow, sickness, and staff shortages have made visible how fragile the system has become. When the safety net frays.

There's nothing like it when people trust you enough to share their truth. This is what real co-design looks like - and why we never take that trust for granted.

Join us in 2026. We're hosting webinars for families managing self-directed care, Personal Assistants, and local authority leaders. Come see inCharge in action, ask questions, and be part of the conversation.

Families are the experts. We're the ones providing 24/7 care, 365 days a year. We're the ones navigating systems, learning legislation, and quietly shouldering the lion's share of support - often because there's no other choice.

Yet that expertise is rarely acknowledged. And when it comes to planning for the future, families are often left to figure it out alone.

What does a good life look like for someone you love? And who gets to decide?

These questions sat at the heart of an event I attended recently called Paving Our Path Together.