In this issue...
Welcome to Members' News 27 April, 2010
Last week I attended our consultative group with 17 UK online centres from all over the country. It was a great opportunity to catch up with centres and get their feedback on projects we are working on and our plans for the future.
We were able to update them on our funding delivery models, something we consulted with them at our last meeting in December. We have since launched the direct and champion funding streams, and their input into these models was extremely important, and will continue to be so as our funding models develop.
We also spent a lot of time discussing myguide and the User journey, and have a number of actions, both for the short and long term, that we can take to ensure it is providing you with exactly what your learners need.
Best wishes
Helen Milner
Managing Director, UK online centres
Face your online fears
We've got 500 centres already signed up to our Face your online fears campaign, and today was meant to be the closing date for registration but due to popular demand we've extended the closing date for another 10 day. We've also got another 100 marketing packs available so make sure your centre doesn't miss out and sign up to be part of the campaign today!
UK online centres website
Our updated website at www.ukonlinecentres.com has now gone live! The new website reflects our positioning as leading experts on digital inclusion in the UK, and will help visitors to find the information they need more easily. Why not have a look at it today.
Help is at Hand has been renamed “Centre partners” and we hope the updated content will help you to deliver digital inclusion in your centre. If you want to submit your MI or update your centre details, please do so in the Partnership section of the site. Please be aware that any bookmarks you have will now have broken.
myguide self service password reset
On 30 April we will be launching the self service password reset function on myguide. This will mean learners will be able to reset their own password, rather than ringing our support line. Once a learner has entered their password incorrectly, they will be directed to a page which will allow them to enter a new password. We hope this will make things a lot easier for you and for your learners.
Discontinuation of myguide courses
We are currently developing a great new engagement product for our May campaign, Face your online fears. To make way for this new product, we will be discontinuing several old ones; Challenge the Walkers, Feeling fine online and It’s never too late to get online. These products will be withdrawn on Friday 7 May in time for the launch of the new Face your online fears game.
Getting British Business Online
Getting British Business Online, the initiative we told you about recently which provides free websites to British businesses, is going from strength to strength. So far tens of thousands of websites have been created and over 800 partners signed up. If your centre does any work with local SMEs, you can sign up to become a partner by visiting the website.
Last month, hands-on sessions with partners were held in Manchester and London and more sessions will be held throughout the UK in the coming months. To register your interest in attending an event, please email partners@gbbo.co.uk.
ITQ conference: ITQ in action
e-skills UK is hosting it’s annual conference in ITQ - IT user qualifications – in London on Thursday 20 May. It aims to provide training centres and colleges with an opportunity to learn more about ITQ and how it can be used and delivered, as well as meeting representatives fromThere will be representatives from a number of awarding bodies. There is a charge for attending the event, and if you're interested in finding out more please click here.
Your Questions...
...answered
Q.
Can I categorise my centre as a housing association?
A.
Yes, we have added Housing Associations as a field, so you can now categorise yourself on the "Update my centre details" page. Remember to check that your other details are still correct!
What else is happening?
Face your online fears - throughout May
Silver Surfers' Day - Friday 21 May
NIACE Adult Learners' Week - 15 - 21 May
Get Online Week - 18 - 24 October