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Articles Making an impact - a blueprint for partnership“At the end of last year, the government’s Social Exclusion Action Plan announced £2m for ‘Social Impact Demonstrator’ projects, led by UK online centres and funded by the Department for Education and Skills (DfES). The projects are now in the early stages of delivery, and four of them involve library networks in Lincolnshire, Leeds, Cambridgeshire and Suffolk The premise for the projects is to explore the relationship between digital and social inclusion, and track how connecting people to ICT can connect them to their community, and to wider social infrastructures. The purpose is to not to chase numbers, but to make a deep impact on very isolated and hard-to-reach groups, and provide a body of evidence to support the links between digital inclusion and social outcomes like employment opportunities, lower debt and better access to public services. Following the priorities of the Plan itself, the projects will specifically target families in poverty, adults supporting children in care, people with mental health issues, and teenage parents – groups already targeted by many libraries and UK online centres in their day-to-day work. Some projects will also focus on older people, another key group often excluded from technology and its benefits. Qualitative research around social impact is hard to measure and its value even harder to quantify for government. However, it’s essential we make the effort to do so if we’re to address the changing ‘digital divide’. The fact is that digital inclusion is no longer an issue of public access. What we’ve got today isn’t simply wide divide – lots of non-ICT users - but increasingly a deep one. Recent figures from the Office of National Statistics show that one in 12 households still don’t have access to the internet, digital TV, or even a mobile phone. And it’s economically or socially disadvantaged households that are left behind. Those at the bottom of the digital divide now - for reasons of age, culture, education, disability, income or just attitude – are further away from digital inclusion than ever. Reaching them, motivating them and supporting them is key in ensuring not just digital equality but social equity. UK online centres and libraries have always been a natural fit, and have had a steady, symbiotic relationship over the last five years. As UK online centres move forward, that relationship has even more synergy, and even more potential. Points of connection go beyond mere digital access to community cohesion, social outreach, personalised service and partnership working. Those areas make up much of the vision outlined in the MLA’s Blueprint for Excellence in public libraries – Connecting people to knowledge and inspiration. They are also key to the vision for UK online centres, laid out in the organisation’s Development Plan which was launched in April – Creating confident citizens. It sees UK online centres addressing digital and social exclusion together, and driving demand for and improvement in t-government or ‘transformational government’ services. The vision of both MLA and UK online centres is to help people realise their potential, assisting their progression through a journey of confidence and skills to new opportunities and choices. This correlation means there are also new possibilities for libraries and UK online centres to work together on both a strategic and operational level - joining forces to lobby stakeholders and sharing resources and good practice on the ground. The Social Impact Demonstrator projects very much support UK online centres’ new direction, and will play an important role in shaping the future of the UK online centre network. In many ways, the library-based projects will also be key in shaping the future of how UK online centres and libraries continue to work together. Each of the library projects uses the established delivery expertise and community links of the libraries involved, and adds to them UK online centre products, services, support and the direction of the Social Impact project framework. It’s a partnership we hope will make a real and sustainable impact on the communities involved, and provide both the results to secure future funding from government, and the structure to inform future t-government and social inclusion projects. The Social Impact Demonstrator projects were selected at the end of last year by a panel of judges which included government stakeholders, public and private organisations. We were looking for innovation in using technology to recruit people, consolidate relationships and cement skills. Each project is as different as the target groups involved, and the challenge is to protect that ability to adapt to an audience while setting targets and research parameters to prove their worth. By working together with libraries and other community partners, I hope we can demonstrate the individual, community and ultimately social impact of ICT, and change the lives and life chances of some of the people who need us most.” For more information about UK online centres or for a copy of the UK online centres Development Plan, please visit www.ukonlinecentres.com.
Case studies Cambridgeshire Cambridgeshire Library Learning Services The Cambridgeshire Library Learning Services EngAGE project’s major focus is older people, but they also plan to target carers and adults with mental health problems. “There’s a tendency for people to think of Cambridge when they think of Cambridgeshire, and that it’s all very well-heeled and rather privileged,” says Rebecca Morgan, Learning Services Manager at Cambridgeshire Library Learning Services. “The truth is that many areas are fairly rural – agriculture is still the main industry in the north of the county – and that means limited travel networks, limited facilities and infrastructure. “The EngAGE project will be delivered via the network of 80 UK online centres supported by Cambridgeshire County Council. By working with key partners including Age Concern, Cambridge Housing Society, Adult Social Care and the Carer’s Project Team, we’re trying to link to some of the most isolated older people in the community, and get them forging their own social links through ICT. “The problem is that if older people don’t know about computers and the internet, they don’t know what it can do for them, and so they don’t think it’s relevant to them. Our challenge is to make it relevant, and show people how easy, useful and even fun technology can be. “As part of the project we’ll be taking our message out to villages, to day care centres, residential homes and sheltered accommodation units. And we’ll be training ICT champions so we get a sustainable network of carer volunteers and peer-to-peer mentors. Who better to sell the benefits of computers than someone who’s just discovered them for themselves? “A key output of the project will be a new web resource, run by and for older people. We want to find out what their interests are, what services they want to know about, and what they’d like the chance to do that a computer might be able to help them with. From what’s on in the local area to community history, council information to pension entitlements, the contents of the site will be completely directed by people engaging in the project. “As well as First Time Online and other UK online centre products, we want to see volunteers progressing on to ICT qualifications like CLAIT and ECDL, and even onto volunteer qualifications. People need to be able to pick their own pathways, but they need the knowledge, confidence and skills to do so. That’s where the EngAGE project comes in.” Leeds Leeds Library and Information Service The Leeds Library and Information Service project will link the 50+ libraries across the city, and target families in poverty. Jason Tutin, Learning Co-ordinator, says: “The Social Impact Demonstrators project is being delivered by two full-time project workers who co-ordinate activity across the city. It will see us consulting with our target audience and developing new learning materials, and new systems of outreach and referral. “Partnership working across Leeds City Council is key to the project, and with the help of the Neighbourhood Learning Team we’ve successfully bid for an e-learning bus which is heading out to schools, community centres, community events and even shopping centre car parks. The idea is to get ICT out to people who wouldn’t walk into an internet café, a UK online centre or even their local library. One of our other partners is the Interplay Theatre, who specialise in engaging disaffected young people, and they’re helping us get young people interested with new media activities. Sessions include film, music, radio and visual arts. Both Interplay Theatre and the e-learning bus can offer free accreditation if people want some formal recognition of their learning. “Another aspect of the project is our partnership work with a cluster of extended schools in Armley – one of the city’s most deprived wards. There we’ve got computer clubs and family sessions, and we’re encouraging parents to come in and work with their children. We are building on a successful family support project in the schools and we hope some parents will stay with the project for the whole year. We want to offer parents the chance to learn new skills at their own pace. “As well as learning how to support schoolwork, parents will also get the chance to do things like look up Ofsted reports, apply for free school meals online or complete the online admissions form. We’re currently looking into how we can demonstrate ‘impact’ not just by looking at the progress of parents but by tracking pupils’ performance at school. We think there’s a link between getting parents involved in their children’s education and their children’s behaviour and results in the classroom, but we want this project to prove it. “It’s important for us to help people relate ICT to their own lives. For instance, we have libraries based in council housing offices and here staff are helping people fill in forms online and register their interest in council properties. Other libraries have a high proportion of older users, and they’re running sessions looking at relevant pension information on direct.gov. “We’re also working with one of the Council’s One Stop Centres that’s in shared premises with the library in Armley. It’s staffed by people who can answer any council query, or at least point clients in the right direction, and it’s usually very busy. We want to see people with queries which can be dealt with online referred to the computers in the library, where they can get help finding what they need. “If you live in Leeds there’s something out there on the internet of use and of interest to you. Even if it’s something as simple and mundane as reporting on broken street lights or pot holes, people can improve their lives and their communities without actually leaving them, by contacting government online. By working with the Council and co-ordinating our approach, we can really make sure people are accessing the services they need in the way that’s easiest for them.” Lincolnshire Kenwick Hill Rural Activities Centre The Lincolnshire Rural Activities Centre (LRAC) is a registered charity, and a UK online centre. Its Social Impact Demonstrator project will link together 11 rural libraries and target both older people and adults with mental health issues. “The centre is situated in a conservation area on the outskirts of Louth,” explains Melanie Lewis, Director at LRAC. “Our aim is to get disadvantaged, rurally isolated and disabled groups involved in community and conservation projects. Activities range from willow coppicing and organic gardening to horse riding, thatching and recently even the reconstruction of an Iron Age round-house! “The Social Impact project will really see us linking those activities to ICT - we want to get people interested in the local area, its history, its environment, and then use that interest to motivate them to learn about computers. For instance, we’ll be encouraging people to use our UK online centre for research, to download digital photographs, write about their activities and contribute to community forums. The project will also see us taking what we do at the centre out to people who wouldn’t necessarily know about us or think we had anything to offer them. “To do that, we’re teaming up with 11 rural libraries, utilising their existing computer equipment and supplementing it where necessary with laptops and wi-fi connections. We’ve got a dedicated tutor going out and running sessions, revitalising the online services in libraries and trying to embed ICT into people’s lives. The idea here is to create something with long-term value – helping people enrich interests and achieve goals. “The project is already creating a lot of interest – particularly in Louth Library where we started activity back in March. Seeing people get interested, get involved and get going on computers is great, and we’re working with lots of other partners both to reach people in the first place and to help them progress at the other end. For instance, the Shaw Trust - a charity which helps disabled people find employment - is referring clients through to the project, and the Grimsby Institute is helping people that want to take their learning further. “Our aim is to join-up local services and personalise provision, making it easy for people to find their way and direct their own journeys. Hopefully by doing so we’ll make that impact on the everyday lives of local people.” Suffolk Suffolk Libraries The Suffolk Libraries’ Social Impact Demonstrator project will link 15 local libraries and target two groups – teenage parents and older people. Kate Byford, Learning Librarian with Suffolk Libraries, explains: “Being a teenage parent or an older person in a rural area can be a uniquely isolating experience, and what we wanted to do with this project was not only reach those people, but create a ‘community’ for them, and link them to the information and skills they need to reach each other, relevant government services and health information. “With both groups we’re going to be targeting intermediaries – carers and volunteers for older people and midwives and health visitors working with teenage parents. We want to get them advocating ICT, and helping our target audiences see the benefits of using computers and libraries. “For older people the hook could be the At Home library service taking out PCs and getting people to find books and reviews on our online library. We’ll also be trying to get older people into libraries. For those with visual impairments there’s large keyboards and other adaptive equipment, and for everyone there’s the support there to help them learn how to do their banking and shopping online and save themselves a bit of time, hassle and even money. “For younger people ICT is already a hook, and we can help them access email and instant messaging at the same time as building their general ICT skills and helping them find information on relevant benefits and childcare options. We can then build on that to introduce learning opportunities, information advice and guidance. “A key focus for us is to get them enjoying books, stories, games and even computers with their children. We’ll often find that teenage mums are fantastic at taking care of their babies, but less comfortable playing with them. Rather than attending ordinary mother and baby groups with older mums, we want to get them into libraries with their children to meet peers and share their experiences. “We plan to set up a discussion forum so young parents can talk, swap tips and keep in touch with friends. The idea is very much to let young people direct their own activities, and create their own online and real-life communities. This isn’t about telling them what to do. It’s about enabling them to enjoy being a parent at the same time as being a teenager, and maybe even start thinking about the future.”
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