The Royal British Legion has seen a sixfold growth in the number of supporters accessing its services after launching a digital-first strategy, the Charity Technology Conference heard last week.

The change increased the number of users accessing digital and contact centre services from around 8,400 in May 2013 to around 50,000 in September this year.

Last year the Legion launched pop-in centres on 16 high streets in locations with high numbers of serving soldiers or veterans, after an audit of its properties revealed that it owned hundreds of buildings, often in inaccessible locations.

It also moved to a “digital-first” approach, consolidated scores of helpline numbers into a single point of contact, and produced more online content.

These moves caused a huge spike in engagement, and allowed the Legion to help far more individuals while reducing costs, the conference heard.

Patrick Nash of ConnectAssist, whose technology consultancy helps the Legion set up and run telephone services, said the move demonstrated the transformative power of technology.

He said benefits included allowing users to access information directly, reach more people, and find out information 24/7.

He said it allowed the charity to have a far clearer idea of who they were helping and how, and target staff where they were most needed, and also allowed them to refer service users onto other charities more effectively.