New research shows that charities are key to driving digital participation. Jude Palmer at Digital Outreach explains how ‘embedded outreach’ is getting people online and how charities themselves are benefitting.
For the last twelve months ‘Susan’ has been unemployed. As a single mum, she regularly attends her local lone parent support group and recently took part in an internet taster session that was brought to the group. Susan suffers from dyslexia and was nervous about trying the web. A few years ago she bought a PC but never actually used it. “I ended up selling my computer for half price. I’m worried I just don’t take things in.”
But the session with local community organisation Hattersley and Mottram Community Media (HMCM) went surprisingly well. Susan’s anxieties were calmed as the web trainer came along to her regular meeting, so she didn’t have to go somewhere new to take part. Comparing gas and electricity prices online for the first time, Susan looked around. She was surrounded by friends, in a familiar venue. She felt relaxed.
Susan had met Clare, the web session leader, many times before through her group and she felt comfortable with her. This also benefited Clare as she knew what made Susan tick and used this knowledge to show her sites that would be of interest. “I’ve been on a computer course before but I just got lost” explains Susan. “But….Clare…explained things really clearly and it made me put my name down for a beginners’ course. This one is with an over-sixties group and I don’t think there’ll be any pressure on me – I think I’ll be able to learn at my own pace.”
There are over 9 million people in the UK who still don’t use the internet. Like Susan, many of these non-users are on low incomes. A significant proportion are older or disabled. A lot of digitally excluded people don’t cope well with change, they might be fearful of the internet, have heard horror stories about web security or maybe they’ve had bad computer experiences in the past. Even the gentlest of teasing or someone speaking too quickly can put people off. Other vulnerable individuals aren’t aware of the benefits that new technology can offer them and some just aren’t interested in getting online.
The result is that many people fall between the gaps of existing digital participation schemes. These initiatives often rely on individuals like Susan seeking out opportunities to get online – going to their nearest computer centre or library. But if someone is frightened of trying the web or just not motivated then ‘pull’ techniques won’t work.
New approach
To combat this, the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills commissioned regulator Ofcom and social enterprise Digital Outreach to trial a new approach to getting people online. Digital Outreach specialises in targeting hard-to-reach groups and has successfully used a technique called ‘embedded outreach’ to support over half a million older and disabled people to switch to digital TV. The government wanted to see whether the same approach could encourage vulnerable groups to use the web as part of their daily lives.
The results speak for themselves. More than 100 Get Connected, Get Online sessions took place, like the one brought to Susan’s group. Over 64 per cent of respondents said that taking part in the session helped them to see the personal benefits of using the internet and 56 per cent of participants felt that taking part gave them the confidence to find out more about getting online. 77 per cent of those groups led by someone who was known to the participants reacted positively to the session.
But there is a critical factor in the success of this outreach work – the voluntary sector. Susan was helped to get online by Clare, a volunteer at community organisation Hattersley and Mottram Community Media. Local charities and voluntary groups are perfectly placed to provide the right kind of support to help their clients get online. They have strong relationships with service users and their staff are highly trusted by them. As a result they can provide access to target groups that are normally very hard to reach.
Voluntary sector staff are typically patient, and throughout the Get Connected, Get Online project, they demonstrated a great enthusiasm for achieving digital inclusion. Research from the programme showed that by embedding knowledge into local charities and training their staff, internet support remained available in the community for several months after the project had finished.
But this wasn’t just a one-way arrangement. Charities also benefited from taking part in the programme. Their staff received training – developing new skills and increased confidence to apply for similar contracts in the future. Their networks were boosted, building their profile amongst other local groups. Many community organisations expanded their client base as more people found out about their services through the project. A number of the 100 voluntary groups that took part actually recruited new volunteers as awareness of their organisation was raised. Importantly, this engagement activity was funded by the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills, who commissioned the pilot project. This funding provided much needed income for the voluntary organisations taking part.
Back to Susan. Her first experience of the internet was a positive one. She felt stress-free and crucially she saw that the web was relevant to her. She developed the confidence and skills needed to sustain regular use. But this wouldn’t have happened without Clare and the involvement of a local community group. Millions of marginalised people, like Susan, still remain offline. The voluntary sector holds the key to turning this around.
Jude Palmer is head of operations at Digital Outreach