digital inclusion – Page 2 – The NEN

NEW Digital Services Delivery Summary Paper published

The COVID-19 pandemic has fundamentally changed the landscape that services operate within. Traditionally face-to-face delivery organisations have been forced to move online, many for the first time, as lockdowns and continued social distancing has meant it impossible or impractical to deliver their work in person.

To support organisations as they continue to navigate this process, we partnered with Your Own Place to produce ‘Our Digital Lockdown Journey’, a blog and vlog series during 2020, exploring how organisations have managed to continue providing vital services by shifting online.

Today we have published a short summary paper: ‘Going Digital or Going Bust’which brings together the key insights, learnings and questions raised through this series.

Through this reflective case-study series we wanted to support organisations to reflect on their capability and confidence to test out new digital techniques, to ultimately ensure that individuals receive the services they need to support their wellbeing throughout and beyond this pandemic.

The series explores topics including tensions in delivering outcomes when delivery models change, safeguarding, the role of values, impacts on the team and cost.

We hope you find this report, blog and vlog series of interest and if you would like to find out more about this work, or any of our Digital Futures portfolio, please do get in contact.

Yours sincerely

Anna Grant

Senior Policy and Development Officer
Carnegie UK Trust

Connecting Scotland: More funding to help families get online

Thousands of disadvantaged young people are being helped to develop valuable digital skills through the Scottish Government’s Connecting Scotland programme.

More than 23,000 iPads and Chromebooks are being distributed among digitally excluded low-income families and care leavers, as part of the latest phase of the £43 million programme.

As well as a new device, recipients also receive mobile data and help to use the internet confidently and safely for up to two years.

Connecting Scotland works with local authorities, public bodies and third sector organisations to reach people across the country.

Communities Secretary Aileen Campbell said: “Access to the internet brings huge benefits, especially during these challenging times. It provides a way to keep in touch and keep us informed, and is also an important way for people of all ages to further their education, find work and training opportunities.

“That’s why in this year’s Programme for Government we further committed to our world-leading Connecting Scotland programme by pledging to reach a total of 50,000 digitally excluded or marginalized people by the end of 2021. The combination of a device plus ongoing support means that everyone can get the most out of their laptop or tablet, and develop their skills.

“So far more than 8,700 people have received this package, and the stories fed back to us from local organisations show the real difference it’s making to households across the country.”

The full-time carer of a child who received a laptop through the programme said: “Thank you so much, the laptop is amazing. We downloaded Google Classroom and Ruby* did all her schoolwork.

“It was so fantastic to see her enjoy looking at a decent sized screen – it’s been a struggle to have Ruby do homework on an old mobile phone which is past its best. To be able to help her home school on a proper laptop is wonderful.”

Connecting Scotland is a Scottish Government programme set up in response to COVID-19. It provides iPads, Chromebooks and support to develop skills for people who are digitally excluded and on low incomes and is delivered in partnership with SCVO, all 32 local authorities and hundreds of third sector organisations across Scotland.

Phase 1 (April – July 2020) focused on those who were at high risk of contracting coronavirus because they were in the extremely high vulnerability group (‘shielding’) or the higher risk of severe illness group.

Phase 2, round 1 launched on 18 August and is focused on households with children, or where a child is normally resident (this includes pregnant women with no child in the household) and care leavers up to the age of 26 (in line with eligibility for aftercare support).

The next round of phase 2 opens tday (24 November)and will close on 18 January at 11am.

Applications can be made by organisations who support eligible groups via the Connecting Scotland website.

Accelerating Digital: Carnegie Trust publishes new report

Eliminating digital exclusion is not a new challenge and the ways that organisations tackle the issue continue to evolve and refine. As a result, policy makers and funders also need to continually review how they support organisations to deliver the best outcomes to improve wellbeing, sustainably and efficiently.

In 2018, the Carnegie Trust launched the #NotWithoutMe Accelerator a development programme to create opportunities for different types of organisations to explore, experiment with and learn more about delivering digital inclusion support, specifically with young people.

We have published ‘Accelerating Digital: Learning from a digital inclusion accelerator programme’ to explore the relative merits and considerations of the approach, particularly for the third sector.

This evaluation has been undertaken by Revealing Reality and is intended to act as a resource for individuals or organisations with an interest in development and capability building in their sector.

This reflective research explores various aspects of the programme design, factors around individual and organisational participation and provides 10 summary considerations. This report is intended to strengthen the evidence base for further capacity building interventions, and with a focus on digital, but also to inform practitioners about this, still relatively novel type of support.

You can read the report here and follow the hashtag #NotWithoutMe on Twitter to join the conversation.

We hope you find this report of interest and if you would like to learn more about this work please do not hesitate to get in touch.

Anna Grant

Senior Policy and Development Officer
Carnegie UK Trust
Twitter: @CarnegieUKTrust
www.carnegieuktrust.org.uk

This project was undertake prior to the Covid-19 pandemic.

Help to get online

Connecting Scotland programme funding to expand to £43 million.

Organisations that work with digitally excluded families and young people in care are being encouraged to get involved with a programme aiming to get more people online.

Funding for Connecting Scotland, which aims to give low income families and individuals an internet device as well as twelve months unlimited data and technical support has now reached £43 million. This follows the announcement of an additional £23 million as part of Programme for Government earlier this month.

With around a hundred applications already received for the current phase of the programme, local authorities and third sector bodies have another three weeks to seek support for the families and care leavers they work with, with further details on how the additional funding will work expected next month.

Communities Secretary Aileen Campbell said: “The pandemic has emphasised the importance of digital connectivity – for education, for access to public services and online shopping, and for staying in touch with friends and family. However, it has also heightened the impact of digital exclusion.

“Over the next 15 months, the Connecting Scotland programme will make a significant contribution towards closing that digital divide by helping many more households to benefit from technology through issuing devices along with offers of support and data.

“By the end of next year it will have brought approximately 50,000 people online, underpinned by an additional £23 million Scottish Government funding. I will be able to announce details of the programme’s next phase, including the groups of people that I believe will be particularly able to benefit in the coming weeks.

“However, it is absolutely crucial that anyone who could benefit from the scheme has the chance to do so which is why I hope local authorities and our third sector partners will help identify even more people needing this kind of support.”

Organisations can apply for phase 2 up to 11am on 5 October here.

For more information on the programme visit www.connecting.scot.

Connecting Scotland initiative to get vulnerable people online

A new £5 million programme is to offer an internet connection, training and support, and a laptop or tablet to vulnerable people who are not already online during the response to coronavirus (COVID-19).

The Connecting Scotland programme will connect 9,000 more people who are considered at clinically high risk themselves so they can access services and support and connect with friends and family during the pandemic.

Those who take part in the programme will be paired with a ‘digital champion’ to support them for six months while they get connected and find the information they need.

Communities Secretary Aileen Campbell said: “Access to the internet is a real lifeline during these difficult times, so we want to support people to get online and stay connected through this project.

“The advice is clear that we need to stay at home, but for those shielding and in a high risk group, and not online, we know this is difficult and can increase isolation and loneliness at a time they already feel vulnerable and might be missing other support.

“The internet helps us to keep in touch with friends and family and is an important way to find information on support services during this challenging time. This £5 million investment will bring 9,000 more people online over the coming months, and help people best manage the impact that coronavirus is having on their lives.”

Local authorities and the third sector will lead on identifying people to receive devices, distributing them and providing training and support.

SCVO Chief Executive Anna Fowlie said: “For most of us, technology has played a crucial role in keeping us connected to friends and family, informed and entertained, and able to continue with learning and work.

“However, there are people that can’t access the benefits of being online because of the affordability of kit and connectivity, or the confidence and skills to be able to use technology effectively. This additional investment will go a long way towards reducing that digital divide and ensuring everyone can benefit from being online.”

Councillor Gail Macgregor, COSLA’s Resources Spokesperson said: “Ensuring that our communities are connected is essential to our response to tackling coronavirus, and COSLA welcomes the positive role that this programme will have in getting people online in the coming weeks and months.”

“Local Government has been at the forefront of efforts to tackle digital exclusion and is ideally placed to understand the significant challenges that it presents, particularly to the most vulnerable. That is why we are working closely with Scottish Government and third sector partners to deliver on this programme.”

Switched On: digital access ‘still far from universal’

Digital Inclusion: young people are missing out

The Carnegie UK Trust has published a new report: Switched On, bringing together research and evidence about key issues related to digital inclusion with a particular focus on children and young people. The report emphasises that adequate digital access is still far from universal. Continue reading Switched On: digital access ‘still far from universal’

Not Without Me: Challenging Perceptions Of The Digital Native Generation

A new report by Carnegie UK Trust addresses digital exclusion among vulnerable young people in our communities. The #NotWithoutMe pilot programme challenges the assumption that young people are ‘digital natives’ who have basic digital skills or access to learning opportunities. Continue reading Not Without Me: Challenging Perceptions Of The Digital Native Generation

Carnegie Trust calls for renewed focus on digital inclusion

Need to tackle the digital divide

The Carnegie Trust has issued a call for a new focus on tackling digital inclusion.

In a new report, Digital Participation and Social Justice in Scotland, the Trust has highlighted the significant overlap between digital exclusion and other forms of social and economic inequality. The report argues that to solve this problem, all organisations delivering services across the public and charitable sectors need to take action to help everyone enjoy the benefits that digital can offer.

The report, which was funded by the Scottish Government, is based on in-depth analysis of the Scottish Household Survey carried out for the Trust by Ipsos MORI. This analysis reveals who is most likely to offline, why this is the case and what might be done to tackle this problem.

Douglas White, Head of Advocacy at the Trust, said: “Digital participation – helping everyone to get online and maximise the benefits of digital technology – is arguably one of the great social challenges of our age.

“We know the great advantages that being digitally connected can offer – improved employment opportunities, higher levels of educational attainment, cheaper goods and products and better access to public services. However too often those who are excluded are the same people who are also disadvantaged according to most other social and economic measures. This means that digital technology – the great enabling force of the 21st century – is actually exacerbating rather than bridging long-standing inequalities in our own society.

“It doesn’t have to be this way – and all of us who are interested in improving well-being have a role in tackling this issue.”

The research builds on previous studies the Trust has undertaken, looking at the digital divide in different locations across Scotland and in mapping best practice in digital participation activities across the UK.

digital-participation-summary

Getting communities connected

More than three million homes and businesses have been reached by the Westminster government’s nationwide rollout of superfast broadband, figures published today reveal. The announcement follows news that libraries are to share in a £1.5 million Scottish Government investment to enhance digital participation.

The rollout is delivering superfast access – internet speeds greater than 24 Mbps – to those properties not covered by existing commercial networks and is on track to take superfast access to 95 per cent of the UK by 2017. More than four out of five UK homes and businesses already have access to superfast speeds, and the rollout is currently reaching an additional 40,000 homes and businesses every week.

This comes following recent news that BT will make up to £129m available to extend the Government-led rollout of superfast broadband across the UK.

Culture Secretary John Whittingdale said: “Reaching three million properties is a huge achievement. Our rollout of superfast broadband is transforming lives up and down the country as every day thousands more homes and businesses are gaining access to superfast speeds.

“It’s fantastic to see that the rollout of superfast broadband is now delivering for customers and for the taxpayer. The levels of people taking up superfast broadband in areas where we invested public money are beyond our expectations, and BT is now reimbursing the public purse to deliver further coverage across the UK. This now means that BT will be providing up to £129m cashback for some of the most hard to reach areas.”

The additional funding will be made available to local authorities to reinvest the money in providing further superfast broadband coverage to even more homes and businesses, and much earlier than originally planned.

The money is being made available as a result of a clause in the contracts BT agreed with government and local authorities that allows the funding BT has received to be returned or reinvested into further coverage if take-up is better than the 20 per cent expected in BT’s original business case. The higher take up rate to date has resulted in BT making a new business case assumption of reaching 30 per cent take-up in these areas.

In Scotland, more than 394,000 homes and businesses have been reached by the rollout of fibre-optic cable.

Gavin Patterson, CEO BT Group, said: “The UK is making great progress with fibre broadband. Twenty three million premises are covered by BT’s open access network, with three million of those enabled under the BDUK programme. Our Openreach engineers have worked tirelessly to connect some of the most remote parts of the UK, from Shetland and Hebrides to the moors of southwest England.

“The public have responded by taking up fibre in large numbers, and that’s good news for those areas that haven’t been reached yet. It means additional funds are being released which will enable us to go even further at no extra cost to the taxpayer and earlier than expected.”

Environment Secretary Elizabeth Truss said: “Our continuing investment in speedier broadband will unleash the full potential of our countryside – creating jobs, boosting exports and improving the quality of life for people living in rural communities.

“By ensuring everyone has access to the same technology and services we can boost the productivity of rural areas, making it as easy to open and expand a business in some of the most beautiful parts of our countryside as it is in our cities.”

Almost £18million funding is being made available to accelerate high speed broadband roll-out for Scotland’s rural communities.

The early benefit comes from the success of the Scottish Government-backed £410million Digital Scotland Superfast Broadband (DSSB) programme, which has now reached over 365,000 homes and businesses from the Shetland Isles to Dumfries and Galloway.

And Scotland’s Deputy First Minister John Swinney yesterday announced £1.5 million to boost free Wi-Fi in public spaces.

The £1.5 million funding for 2015/16 is part of the Scottish Government’s wider drive to enhance digital participation, improve rural connectivity and the uptake of online public services across Scotland.

Deputy First Minister John Swinney visited Ullapool library in the MacPhail Centre to see at first-hand the impact of the public library Wi-Fi programme to date.

He wanted to find out how people are benefitting from freely available connectivity and met trainers and participants in a ‘Get To Know Your Techno’ group, an innovative digital participation initiative which has seen young people teach older people digital skills and the benefits of being online.

Mr Swinney, said: “It’s wonderful to be here in Ullapool to announce our public wireless programme which includes a second phase of funding for free public Wi-Fi in libraries. This supports the promotion of the wider economic, social and cultural benefits from public spaces and has the potential to attract new audiences to our public libraries.

“Helping libraries and other public spaces to provide free connectivity will be increasingly important as the use of smartphones and tablets continues to increase and the appetite for internet access on the move grows.

“Libraries don’t just provide access to reading material they play a crucial role in providing access to IT, improving attainment, supporting children in the early years and empowering communities. We want to help libraries to empower communities, tackle inequality and boost the economy, as well as provide more people with opportunities to learn and to experience local heritage and culture.

“The latest research from Ofcom shows that more Scots than ever before are using smart devices to access the internet – almost 40% say their smartphone is their main way of accessing the internet and indicates that half the adults in Scotland own a tablet. The Scottish Government is committed to improving and extending access to public Wi-Fi in support of our world class digital vision where people can connect anywhere, with any device, at any time by 2020.

“Ullapool is already benefitting from free public Wi-Fi and the ‘Get To Know Your Techno’ group is a great example of how easier access to Wi-Fi improves digital participation across our communities and can bring younger and older members of the community together.”

PEPping up digital inclusion

Digital participation to tackle inequality and boost online access

A new strategy outlining how digital technology can be used to tackle inequalities and benefit communities across the country was launched by Culture Secretary Fiona Hyslop at PEP in West Pilton Park yesterday afternoon.

The National Digital Participation Framework for Local Action maps out how helping people to get online and become confident users of the internet can open up new possibilities in healthcare, education and economic development. It also details how anyone can access support and training on digital skills at home, at work and in communities.

The strategy was launched as Ms Hyslop visited Pilton Equalities Project (PEP), where she met staff, volunteers and members of the local community. PEP provides a range of services for older and other vulnerable adults in North Edinburgh, including computer classes, which encourage independence and reduce isolation.

Cabinet Secretary for Culture and External Affairs Fiona Hyslop said: “Digital technology is transforming our society and changing the way we live – how we buy goods and services, how we build and maintain friendships and how we communicate with people and organisations in our local communities and across the world.

“The Scottish Government is determined Scotland is seen as a world-leading digital nation by 2020. We want everyone to be able to reap the social, cultural and economic benefits the internet can bring.

“While good progress is being made with the delivery of digital infrastructure, more needs to be done to enable people to become active digital citizens and share in the benefits the internet can bring.

“The Pilton Equalities Partnership is an excellent example of an organisation that supports people who are digitally excluded. The Scottish Government, through our Digital Participation Strategy, intends to support similar organisations who wish to make a positive contribution to increasing digital participation.”

Jean Gallagher, who attends computer classes at PEP, said: “I was delighted when a friend advised me that there was a place nearby that had a computer class for the elderly and, although I was a bit apprehensive, I decided that If I was to understand about the technology of today’s world I had to take the plunge.

“As a complete novice seven years ago, not even knowing how to turn on a computer, I can now do most of my shopping online, I do the family banking online, keep in touch with friends and family abroad via Skype and those nearer hand via social networking.

“I feel there is no way that at 81 years old would I be able to keep up with the modern way of living if it had not been for the staff at the PEP centre. I owe my new way of life to them and will be eternally grateful.”

Chris Yiu, Director of Digital Participation at SCVO said: “Everybody should have an opportunity to benefit from the internet, regardless of background or circumstances. Three in ten people in Scotland still lack the basic skills needed to get things done online. If we are serious about being a world-leading digital nation then the time has come to close this divide.

“SCVO welcomes the publication of the Digital Participation Strategy, and is delighted to play a leading role in this important agenda. By working across the public, private and third sectors to coordinate and scale up digital participation projects, together we will make a real and lasting difference to people and communities across Scotland.”

PEP manager Helen Tait said: “PEP provide the facilities, training and on-going digital support to enable older and less able people within our community to take advantage of the social and economic benefits of digital technology. Much of the focus is directed to understanding and using general web-browsing, email, social media, online shopping, and public services. It also creates the opportunity to increase socialisation through peer support. We also ensure that users are aware of, and know how to handle, the security issues that associate with online services.”