Over the past 25 years the number of people aged 85 or over has doubled here in the UK, budgets have been slashed and caring has become one of the biggest concerns for the new Coalition Government.

In a bid to address the issue of whom and how the increasingly ageing population of Britain will be taken care of, The University of Bristol and the University of the West of England are developing robots to provide care and companionship for elderly people.

The project has received support by a grant from the EU of £3.5m. The main goal is to develop robots that can help elderly people to live independently at home for longer.

While the concept of "robotic carers" might be cost effective, I'm not convinced robots will provide a solution to Britain's social care crisis. Robots will never be able to replace face-to-face human contact which is in most cases what the elderly need.

Professor Heinz Wolff, the star of the 1980s science programme The Great Egg Race, who back in the days worked in the development of devices to improve the quality of life of the elderly, has the same thoughts about these "robotic carers".

"I'm quite sure that when you are the venerable age that I've reached and somebody says your robot is going to be delivered tomorrow and it will look after you, you will be a little unhappy.”

"You might wonder how nice it would be to have someone who had warm hands and someone who cares and gives you a peck on the cheek. Mind you, a robot could kiss you I suppose - imagine being kissed by a robot."

We want to hear from you now. Do you really think Robots could provide a solution to Britain's social care crisis? Will robots ever replace face-to-face human contact?