Friday 24 May

Part of Adult Learners Week, 18-26 May 2013

#walw13 #digitalday

To celebrate digital inclusion in all its forms, we will be on Twitter, Facebook and here on our blog throughout Digital Day, reporting from events across Wales, sharing inspiring stories and helping you with your digital questions.

We will also be launching our new campaign – HELP GET WALES ONLINE – and asking you to share what you’ve done to help people use the web.

So, put Digital Day in your diary and get involved!

22-26 April 2013 is Spring Online Week.

A campaign by Digital Unite, Spring Online Week includes free digital taster events across the UK which will help thousands of people learn about and use computers, the internet and other modern technology.

The Communities 2.0 team will, as always, be out and about across Wales delivering free drop-in sessions. We will bring laptops, tablets, e-readers and smartphones with us for you to have a go with. If you know someone who needs help with using the internet or digital technology, find out what’s happening by checking our calendar or by searching for Computer Courses Near You.

Get Caerphilly Online holds support sessions across the area for people wanting help in using the internet. As part of its help, the campaign runs ‘Digital Fridays’ drop-in sessions at libraries.

Craig Clark, a Get Caerphilly Online Officer, said: “We have quite a number of people coming to us for support around the changes to the benefit system at the moment and the introduction of ‘Universal Jobmatch’.

“While anyone from the age of 16 is welcome we are here to help anyone of any age, many of our learners are aged 50 and over.  Getting online has many benefits including saving money, learning, communicating more easily and finding a job. Not being online these days places us all at a disadvantage.”

Cllr Ken James, Cabinet Member for Regeneration, Planning and Sustainable Development, said: “We are pleased to be working in partnership with a range of agencies to promote digital inclusion. Encouraging our residents to learn the skills needed to access the Internet is important to us here at the council, as online communication, education and job opportunities become more prominent. I look forward to hearing about the next 2,500 people who have been supported through this project.”

The campaign has recently benefited from the support of volunteers and is keen to recruit more to develop more opportunities across the borough.  You can find out more at getcaerphillyonline.org.uk

Get Caerphilly Online is a partnership between existing initiatives supported by Communities 2.0, Caerphilly Borough Council, Get IT Together and a variety of local partners.

If you would like to find out more or join Get Caerphilly Online, contact Matthew Bevan of CCBC Community Regeneration on 01443 864305 or by email at bevanm@caerphilly.gov.uk

Councillor Craig Middle of RCT, Ann Beynon of BT, Gail Bradbrook of Citizens Online and Ryan Jones of Communities 2.0 at the launch of Get RCT Online in Porth today.

Almost every week at the moment we have the pleasure of seeing the hard work of our Brokers and Area Teams pay off as another county ‘Gets Online’.

Nobody should be under any illusion about how much co-ordination and negotiation goes into making these partnerships happen. Of course – a bit of money to get things moving certainly helps. But celebratory events like today really mark the beginning of the journey for these new partnerships in ensuring that digital inclusion work is sustained long after Communities 2.0 investment has ended.

Particularly gratifying today was feeling that C2.0 had acted as a catalyst for a public-private-third sector partnership that will bring the benefits of the internet to the citizens of RCT for many years to come.

Get RCT Online is a campaign that brings together several partners who support and encourage people in Rhondda Cynon Taff to get online and make the most of technology. Partners and exhibitors at the launch included:

• Communities 2.0
• Citizens Online ‘Get IT Together’,
• RNIB ‘Get Connected’
• RCT Homes ‘DO IT’
• Penrhys Partnership ‘Big Click’
• Care & Repair
• Get Online @ Home – Computer Recyclers
• RSVP ‘Welcome Friends’
• RCT CBC
• St. Cath’s Plus

Councillor Craig Middle, RCT CBC, spoke at the event about the benefits of being online for people in Rhondda Cynon Taff and the importance of everyone being able to get these benefits.

The Get RCT Online website, getrctonline.org.uk, was also launched at the event and is a great place to find resources, courses and news about digital inclusion activities around RTC.

If you know someone who needs help to use computers or the web, use this search to find local computer courses in Rhondda Cynon Taff and the rest of Wales.

There is also a Get Blaenau Gwent Online Twitter feed @GetBGOnline

The Get Blaenau Gwent Online campaign is a local strategic partnership, consisting of the Welsh Government’s Communities 2.0 Digital Inclusion Project, Blaenau Gwent County Borough Council (including the adult education, leisure, IT and  libraries departments), Tai Calon Community Housing, Job Centre Plus and other local partners.

Progress is being made on getting more people to embrace the Internet and the opportunities it presents, but there is still a long way to go.  The latest results from the 2012 National Survey for Wales show that 73% of the adult population in Wales use the internet, which is up from 66% at the start of 2011.  In addition, the latest ONS figures show that 19% of adults in the Gwent Valleys have never used the Internet, compared to 25% in 2011.

The forthcoming Welfare Reform and the introduction of Universal Credit will bring significant challenges for many residents who are unable to use digital technologies.  This proactive partnership approach to digital inclusion in Blaenau Gwent will ensure that people are able to access a well co-ordinated, appropriate package of support.

Cathryn Marcus, Communities 2.0 Project Director, said:

“We are delighted to support this new campaign for Blaenau Gwent. Knowing how to get online and use technology can help you stay in touch with family and friends, save money and even get more out of your hobbies. Being online has become increasingly important in recent years, as many more public services are transferred to the web. The vast majority of jobs now require some level of IT proficiency. Most vacancies are advertised on the Internet, with many requiring you to be online to apply for them.”

Councillor Haydn Trollope, Blaenau Gwent Council’s Executive Member for Work Transformation and Partnership and the council’s Digital Champion, says:

“The Government’s welfare reform programme is set to have a big impact on people living in our communities. We take our responsibility in supporting people through the changes very seriously and have set up a special Executive Committee sub-group to look at how we can help and support those affected.

“We are pleased to be teaming up with the Welsh Government, through the Communities 2.0 programme, on the Get Blaenau Gwent Online campaign in order to try and address the significant digital challenges facing people in the area. The package of support includes the introduction of two digital inclusion officers who will work with the local community to develop hubs across the borough where people can easily access a computer and learn the basic skills required to carry out tasks online. As well as helping people get to grips with the digital side of welfare reform, it is imperative we encourage them to use the internet as a tool to help them budget and access financial advice and planning.”

Norma Williams is learning how to use computers for the first time, at the age of 79, at Ebbw Vale library. She said:

“I’ve been going with my daughter, as she wants to learn new skills for her job. I thought it would be good to learn for myself, as I have a son in South Africa and would like to talk to him on Skype. I’ve been shown how to set up an e-mail address and have been taught basic keyboard and mouse skills in the first two lessons. I’ve enjoyed it so far and our tutor, from Communities 2.0, has allayed any concerns I had about online security. He’s making it easy to understand, puts us at ease and helps us to learn from our mistakes. As I learn more, I think I would like to have an iPad and my own internet connection at home.”

Most of the residents had not touched a computer before, but once they were shown how to use one and what to use it for, they got so enthusiastic.  They now want to set up a computer club.  One of the residents has volunteered to oversee the club and one of the Digital Champions will provide support once a month to give them a lesson on Skype, internet shopping, digital photography etc.

If you know anyone who might benefit from a similar experience, you could find them a computer course in Milford Haven or anywhere in Wales.

Come along on Saturday 23rd February with your old photos, to share your memories and contribute to an archive for the Winding House’s collection.

Digital Inclusion project, Get Caerphilly Online has teamed up with The Winding House to jointly organise an exciting event which aims to bring Caerphilly County Borough’s history to life using a website called ‘Historypin’.

“Street parties, mining stories – all sorts of everyday happenings, new and old, are part of our history here in County Borough. The changing face of our streets and communities are often captured in old photos, videos and memories and we’d love to help preserve these.” said Emma Wilson from The Winding House.

Angharad Dalton from the Get Caerphilly Online team explained how the event will achieve this: “Historypin allows anyone to ‘pin’ their old photos to a map of the world. Our event aims to showcase simple and exciting online technology which everyone can use for free, and at the same time contribute to The Winding House’s public archive”.

On February 23rd Get Caerphilly Online and the Winding House invites everyone in County Borough to come and share their photos, stories and memories of events. All you need to do is bring your stories, and we will help with the rest!

This free, friendly and informal event will run from 11 am – 3 pm on Saturday 23rd February at the Winding House, Cross Street, New Tredegar, NP24 6EG