In this issue...
Welcome to Members' News 15 March, 2010
I've had a great week this week at the National Digital Inclusion Conference, which was the largest gathering of the digital inclusion community to date with 600 delegates and over 1,000 people watching on the live web steam. Digital inclusion even became the most talked about thing on Twitter!
One of the great outcomes of the conference was a set of solid promises for action to get more people online not just in 2010 but beyond. Some fantastic ideas came out, including a Digital Neighbourhoods campaign to encourage people to Pass IT on to their neighbours, a commitment to get all of Britain's care homes online, and a promise from the Peabody Trust and Southern Housing to get all of their sheltered housing residents using computers and the internet. UK online centres, along with the BBC, promised to see if we can create a national "online line" which can be promoted at the end of all TV programmes, adverts and government leaflets to help people get online.
Thousands of digital promises are still being recorded on the Digital Engagement Ning which Martha Lane Fox, the Champion for Digital Inclusion, will collect. Why not have a think about what you can promise?
The conference was a great way to get everyone together to hear some fantastic speakers, but more importantly than that it was brilliant to end the event with solid promises from organisations and individuals to help make things better. More than just talking about it, I think the actions promised will really help to close the digital divide.
Best wishes
Helen Milner
Managing Director, UK online centres
Our May campaign - Face your online fears
In the last couple of issues of Members’ news, we’ve been telling you all about our next marketing campaign, which will run throughout May to support Silver Surfer’s Day, and we can now reveal what this is and how your centre can sign up!
Face your online fears is a campaign to encourage older visitors to your centre to face any fears or worries they might have about getting online.
We know that many people think that computers and the internet are far too complicated for them to understand, or even that they could break the internet with the touch of a button. The Face your online fears campaign will give these people practical solutions to help them confront these common fears and worries for Silver Surfers Day.
By taking part in the campaign, you will receive a free marketing pack to help advertise your centre's activities locally, and will benefit from a national Face your online fears PR campaign. Click here to find out more and to sign your centre up to take part in the campaign.
NHS MidLifeCheck
Since it went live on Monday 8 February, over 50,000 mid-lifers have logged on to www.nhs.uk/midlifecheck to check up on their health, with many setting up plans to improve their health and wellbeing, and receive motivational messages to help them on their journey
If you’ve not tried it with visitors to your centre yet, why not have a look today? It could be a great way to get them thinking about the next steps they can take online. You can also find more information, and download free marketing materials for your centre here.
Updates to myguide courses
We have updated a number of further myguide courses to include recent improvements, including emailable course certificates and a clearer loading status which will inform learners when courses have failed to load.
The most recent courses to be included in this update are Using the web and Using a home PC, and more will follow in the coming weeks.
learndirect qualification
Have any of your learners become real whizzes with computers? If so, we’ve teamed up with learndirect to help some of them gain a level 2 qualification. This could really improve their job prospects and give their confidence a boost. If you think this sounds right for a learner you know, why not show them how an IT qualification with learndirect could be the next step forward? Visit their IT page where learners can do a fun IT quiz to test their skills and find out more about how learndirect could help them.
Booktrust project update
The Bookbite partnership we’ve been running in conjunction with the Booktrust has been a resounding success! 120 centres took part, ordering over 11,000 copies between them. Centres also took part in a webinar that was jointly hosted by the Booktrust and UK online centres.
We’d like to thank everyone who took part for their support. If anyone has received copies of the publication, it would be great if they could complete and return the survey which is on the inside back cover of the book. If it’s easier, it can also be completed online here. Please complete your surveys by 31st March 2010.
Changes to State Pensions
The Government is introducing important changes to both state and private pensions over the next couple of years, and if you have older learners in your centre this may be something you want to inform them about.
Some changes will come into effect from 6 April 2010, and will make State Pensions fairer and more widely available, so more people will qualify for them when they retire. Those who have recently retired, are approaching retirement age or are carers might need to take simple steps to ensure they don’t miss out. To find out how these changes could affect visitors to your centre, have a look at the DWP resource pack here.
Your Questions...
...answered
Q.
How do I change the details of who is the primary contact at my centre?
A.
To change these details, email ukonlinecentres@ufi.com along with your centre ID and we will amend your details.