{"id":18826,"date":"2017-11-09T13:00:17","date_gmt":"2017-11-09T13:00:17","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/digileaders.com\/?p=18826"},"modified":"2017-12-01T16:48:14","modified_gmt":"2017-12-01T16:48:14","slug":"boosting-uk-basic-digital-skills","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/digileaders.com\/boosting-uk-basic-digital-skills\/","title":{"rendered":"Boosting UK Basic Digital Skills"},"content":{"rendered":"

It\u2019s 2017 \u2013 surely everyone has Basic Digital Skills now?<\/strong><\/p>\n

It may be hard to believe, but there are still more than 12 million UK adults (nearly 25% of the population) who can\u2019t use the internet effectively. This leaves them at significant risk of being left behind socially and economically as technology becomes ever more integral to daily life.<\/p>\n

From a business perspective, 1.4 million UK SMEs don\u2019t have basic digital skills either. And only 50% of sole traders are using the internet to help their business thrive.<\/p>\n

To find new ways to tackle this skills shortage, Doteveryone (previously Go ON UK) launched two one-year programmes in Croydon and Lewisham to help those who are hard to reach. Our report<\/a> was published in January.<\/p>\n

Our Successes<\/strong><\/p>\n

During the lifespan of the project, independent research showed that the number of people with basic digital skills increased by 9% in Croydon and 10% in Lewisham. That means they can apply for jobs, enjoy hobbies and interests, and get better deals on shopping and services.<\/p>\n

So far across the two boroughs we have helped more than 6,300 people to do this for the first time.<\/p>\n

We focused on small and micro businesses too. Our Digital Connect<\/a> project helped them to understand how their businesses could grow and thrive through increased basic digital skills, saving time or generating new opportunities.<\/p>\n

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Our Challenges<\/strong><\/p>\n

The \u201chard to reach\u201d really are just that! Projects with niche groups such as older people or people living in social housing need careful co-design to ensure that their motivation and how they might benefit are fully understood.<\/p>\n

Managing a complex series of projects with a broad range of partners and stakeholders proved to be a challenge. However, by agreeing on what we wanted to accomplish and by working together to achieve it, we were successfully able to deliver a programme that really helped people increase their skills”<\/p>\n

All activities need repeated, and often offline, engagement. Whilst word of mouth from learners to other potential participants proved more valuable than we expected, backing that up through \u201ctrusted faces in local places\u201d was essential in sharing information and credibility. Using libraries, community centres, and community spaces to provide leaflets and encouragement were critical. Increasing awareness of the project required a great deal of input at a local level. More promotion like this could have seen even greater participation levels.<\/p>\n

Lessons Learned<\/strong><\/p>\n

We learned a great deal as you would expect from this type of project. The main things were:<\/p>\n