the digital participation plan 2016 final draft for approval...prepared by diane webb, digital...

Prepared by Diane Webb, Digital Assistance Project Manager Jan 2016 5.0

The Digital Participation Plan 2016

Final Draft for Approval

‘Opens up the world’

(Consultation participant and Service User from the Disability Resource Centre,

on the benefits of the Internet)

Digital Participation Plan 2015


Contents

Thank you to all who contributed .................................................................................................... 4

Executive Summary ........................................................................................................................ 5

The vision........................................................................................................................................ 8

Strategic alignment ......................................................................................................................... 8

What do we mean by digital participation? .................................................................................... 10

The benefits of digital participation ................................................................................................ 11

Who are digitally excluded? .......................................................................................................... 13

Digital exclusion in Renfrewshire .................................................................................................. 15

The digital participation landscape in Renfrewshire ...................................................................... 17

Consultation results ...................................................................................................................... 19

Q1. How can we improve access to Internet? ........................................................................... 20

Q2. How can we improve access to Technology ....................................................................... 21

Q3. How can we improve Digital Skills? .................................................................................... 22

Analysis......................................................................................................................................... 23

Our approach ................................................................................................................................ 25

Recommendations ........................................................................................................................ 28

Measuring success ....................................................................................................................... 32

Appendices ................................................................................................................................... 34

Appendix 1 - Who and how we consulted ..................................................................................... 35

Appendix 2 – Extended consultation results and quotes ............................................................... 38

Appendix 3 – Proposed Digital Strategy Model ............................................................................. 42


Thank you to all who contributed

We consulted with over 37 different organisations, groups and individual citizens across the

public, private and third sector. We would like to thank those who took part in the discussions

and completed our survey. Thank you to those who passed on our survey enabling us to reach

a wide range of staff and service users and to those who provided additional support to

service users where required. We held an Equality and Human Rights Impact Assessment

(EQHRIA) workshop which resulted in extremely valuable feedback and we appreciate the

time given by the group. The energetic discussions and high response rate demonstrates a

willingness and desire to increase digital participation across Renfrewshire. We will continue to

consult with you going forward. At this stage we welcome further feedback on this draft

version of the Digital Participation Plan. An accessible easy read version will also be circulated

in due course.

Thank you for your time and energy.


Executive Summary

Having access to the internet is an essential component of 21st century life and is often

referred to as the ‘fourth utility.’ For most of us, the internet is just another part of everyday life

and it can be difficult to imagine what it’s like to be digitally excluded. ‘A fifth of UK households

do not have even basic internet services in their home. This rises to more than a third of

households in the lowest socioeconomic groups and to nearly 70% of households aged over

75’1. ‘Nearly 1 in 5, 800,000 adults in Scotland still lack the basic digital skills to get things

done online’2.

‘Digital participation describes people’s ability to gain access to digital technology, and

understand how to use it creatively. Increased digital participation can improve people’s quality

of life, boost economic growth and allow more effective delivery of public services’3. For the

purposes of the plan Digital is defined as both online and offline technology, i.e. TV,

smartphone, tablet, personal computer, games console etc.

‘A lack of internet access will increasingly come to represent both a symptom and a

cause of Poverty’ 4(Carnegie UK Trust, 2014)

Research reveals that those who can benefit the most from technology are those most likely to

be digitally excluded and already facing social inequality. The key groups who face the highest

levels of digital exclusion are; disabled or people with long term health conditions, older adults

and people in poverty. We must prevent such inequalities from being reinforced. In this Plan

we believe if we get it right for those who face the most barriers to digital participation we will

get it right for everyone else.

1 Ofcom, Communications Market Report, 2012 http://stakeholders.ofcom.org.uk/market-data-research/market-data/communications-market-reports/cmr12/

2 BBC Learning Audience Research http://www.bbc.co.uk/corporate2/insidethebbc/whatwedo/learning/audienceresearch 3 Scotland’s Digital Future: A strategy for Scotland, March 2011 http://www.gov.scot/Topics/Economy/digital 4 Across the Divide: Carnegie Trust UK, April 2013 http://www.carnegieuktrust.org.uk/CMSPages/GetFile.aspx?guid=7324c775-a74a-47d6-b9ad4a4c173087a3

http://stakeholders.ofcom.org.uk/market-data-research/market-data/communications-market-reports/cmr12/

http://www.bbc.co.uk/corporate2/insidethebbc/whatwedo/learning/audienceresearch

http://www.gov.scot/Topics/Economy/digital

http://www.carnegieuktrust.org.uk/CMSPages/GetFile.aspx?guid=7324c775-a74a-47d6-b9ad4a4c173087a3


Renfrewshire is proud of its approach to Tackling Poverty and we will ensure that any

resources allocated to the Digital Participation Plan, including those from the Tackling Poverty

Programme, are targeted at supporting those digitally excluded individuals and groups

impacted by poverty.

The value of digital inclusion for a new user has been calculated to be £1,064 per

annum5(GoOnUk, 2014)

The results of the consultation tell us that there is a need for increased access to technology,

wifi, digital skills training and trained staff and that this should be delivered by local community

service providers where relationships with digitally excluded groups already exist. These

services need to be local and in buildings that are accessible. The consultation also

highlighted other areas such as broadband and wireless infrastructure as key enabler of digital

participation. The need for a strategic approach was evident.

We plan to tackle the complex but exciting challenge of Digital Participation through a

community led partnership approach focussing on three key recommendations;

1. Reviewing, Co-ordinating and Promoting what we do already to ensure we have an

agreed ‘core digital offer’

2. Building Capacity in existing services that work with digitally excluded groups piloting

new approaches

3. Influencing Policy, Procurement and Practice

In regards to Recommendation 1 we propose a coordinated and strategic approach by

developing an overarching Digital Strategy with Digital Participation at the core. The aim will

be to ensure we have an agreed core digital offer that can be delivered by Libraries and

Community Adult Education. Relevant workstreams are suggested in the model. This

5 BT – Valuing Digital Inclusion, 2014 http://www.btplc.com/Betterfuture/ConnectedSociety/Creatingpossibilities/Valueofdigitalinclusion/Valuing-Digital-Inclusion.pdf


approach is based on Scottish Government and Glasgow City Council Digital Strategies. The

Digital Strategy will be influenced and guided by a strategic Digital Leadership Group made up

of council, community planning partners and other interested stakeholders. A community led

Digital Participation Reference Group chaired by the CEO of Engage our Renfrewshire’s Third

Sector Interface will shape the strategy and ensure a joined up approach.

Proposed Digital Strategy Model


The vision

In a Digital Renfrewshire we will make sure that everybody has the opportunity to reach their

digital potential. We are determined that everyone has the means of access, awareness, skills

and confidence to participate online responsibly.

‘this is for everyone6’ (Tim Berners-Lee inventor of the internet)

Strategic alignment

Our Digital Participation plan has been designed to align with the relevant Scottish

Government strategies and support the delivery of key Renfrewshire strategic plans and

initiatives:

The Scottish Government’s Digital Strategy “Scotland’s Digital Future: A Strategy for

Scotland”

This Scottish Government strategy, published in March 2011, sets out the actions required to

ensure that Scotland is able to take advantage of the opportunities of the digital age;

addressing the delivery of public services, growing a digital economy and building digital

participation and connectivity.7 More recently the Scottish Government published Digital

Participation: A national framework for local action, in 2014.8 This Digital Participation Plan

(DPP) is aligned with Renfrewshire Council’s strategic priorities;

Our Community Plan9 (Jobs and Economy theme):

Seek to promote digital inclusion and active use of new technologies across

Renfrewshire (within the Renfrewshire forum for empowering communities section)

6 Tim Berners-Lee London, Olympics Opening Ceremony, 2012 https://mobile.twitter.com/timberners_lee/status/228960085672599552

7 Scotland’s Digital Future: A strategy for Scotland, March 2011 http://www.gov.scot/Topics/Economy/digital

8 Scottish Government Digital Participation: A national framework for local action, 2014 http://www.gov.scot/Publications/2014/04/6821

9 Renfrewshire Community Plan 2013-2023 http://www.renfrewshire2023.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/11/CommunityPlan1.pdf

https://twitter.com/timberners_lee/status/228960085672599552

https://mobile.twitter.com/timberners_lee/status/228960085672599552


http://www.gov.scot/Publications/2014/04/6821


Our Council Plan10 – “A Better Future, A Better Council”:

Deliver additional support to residents with limited access to or experience of using

digital technologies to ensure that they access all of the benefits and services to which

they are entitled

Improved information through better technology.

All appropriate council services will be available through digital channels and citizens

will be supported to use digital options for access and engagement (Customer Access)

Our Tackling Poverty Action Plan11

Building the digital and financial capabilities of those in poverty

Our priority Strategic Initiatives

We will also actively look for opportunities to promote Digital Participation across all our other

major strategic initiatives including the Paisley Town Centre Heritage Asset Strategy, The

Business Improvement District, the UK City of Culture Bid 2021 and our Families First

programme in particular. Digital Participation will also become increasingly important for both

service users and staff as Telehealth and Telecare services become more commonplace.

Keeping pace

The plan has to be cross cutting in the same way technology is tightly woven into today’s

modern society. However a cautionary note - longer term strategies need to keep pace with

emerging technology if they are to remain relevant and deliver the anticipated benefits as

highlighted by this statement from Ofcom: ‘To put this incredible speed of adoption in some

context, radio took 38 years to reach 50 million users, television took 13 years, web took 4

years and Facebook took just 10 months. Nearly 75% of internet users have a social media

profile, compared to 22% in 200712. The Innovation and Incubation workstream will focus on

this area.

10

Renfrewshire Council Plan 2014-2017 http://www.renfrewshire.gov.uk/wps/wcm/connect/3cb3ae2c-6cc9-4b7e-a879-1828f6da2484/ce-RenCouncilPlan2014-2017.pdf?MOD=AJPERES

11 Renfrewshire Council Report Tackling Poverty Action Plan 25th June, 2015 http://renfrewshire.cmis.uk.com/renfrewshire/Decisions/tabid/67/ctl/ViewCMIS_DecisionDetails/mid/391/Id/a3b7c299-2443-4a96-a3a4-

65320e7b153f/Default.aspx


What do we mean by digital participation?

Digital participation describes people’s ability to gain access to digital technology, and

understand how to use it creatively. Increased digital participation can improve people’s quality

of life, boost economic growth and allow more effective delivery of public services13. It also

allows people to engage actively in shaping the future direction of society in a way that was

not possible in an analogue world14.

Inclusion versus participation

You may be wondering why we talk about digital participation rather than digital inclusion.

Chris Yiu Director of Digital Participation at Scottish Council for Voluntary Organisations

(SCVO) makes the distinction and echo’s the thinking behind this plan. ‘For the most part this

boils down to the same thing. But it’s an interesting angle to think about, because it says

something about what we’re trying achieve. All the things we’re doing are about empowering

people to participate fully in society - to make their voices heard, to create, to engage, to take

part. This is so much bigger than buying things online or using digital public services

(important though both are)15’.

In its recent Report, Spreading the Benefits of Digital Participation, the Royal Society of

Edinburgh (RSE) described access to the internet as a “right”. A world class Digital

Scotland will be one in which internet access is considered as a utility on a par with access to

electricity and gas, and where digital literacy takes it place alongside conventional literacy

and numeracy at the heart of our education system16. Digital Participation offers a real

opportunity to tackle ingrained social and economic inequalities in society today.

12 Statistics from Ofcom: Adults’ Media Use and Attitudes Report, 2015. http://stakeholders.ofcom.org.uk/market-data-research/other/research-publications/adults/media-lit-10years/ 13

Scotland’s Digital Future: A strategy for Scotland, March 2011 http://www.gov.scot/Topics/Economy/digital 14

Scottish Government Digital Participation: A national framework for local action, 2014 http://www.gov.scot/Publications/2014/04/6821 15

Digital Inclusion: A Scottish Perspective, UK Government Service, January 2015 https://digitalinclusion.blog.gov.uk/2015/01/07/digital-inclusion-a-scotland-perspective/

16Spreading the Benefits of Digital Participation, the Royal Society of Edinburgh, April 2014 https://www.royalsoced.org.uk/1058_SpreadingtheBenefitsofDigitalParticipation.html

http://stakeholders.ofcom.org.uk/market-data-research/other/research-publications/adults/media-lit-10years/



http://www.gov.scot/Publications/2014/04/6821

https://digitalinclusion.blog.gov.uk/2015/01/07/digital-inclusion-a-scotland-perspective/

https://www.royalsoced.org.uk/1058_SpreadingtheBenefitsofDigitalParticipation.html


The benefits of digital participation

Citizens and communities

Access to the internet can be transformative and it is for everyone - 86% of internet users

aged over 55 years say that having access to computers and the web has improved their

lives17. The benefits of being online can be summarised as;

Improved educational attainment; e.g. access to online learning available 24/7

extending the time available for learning and opening up access to a huge range of

learning material for those in formal study and informal (e.g. for a parent at home with

young children who may not have the opportunity for learning otherwise)

Better job prospects and flexibility; e.g. in 2015 90% of jobs will require digital

skills18

Better access to public services; e.g. paying your council tax online outwith the usual

9-5 opening hours and not having to travel to the public service office. Improved

accessibility for disabled people by reducing travel and introducing alternative

communication methods using screen readers and voice activated technology.

Financial savings through cheaper goods and products e.g. using price

comparison sites and paperless billing, food shop delivery. The value of digital inclusion

for a new user has been calculated to be £1,064 per annum19

More choice and convenience e.g. 71% of over 55s said they can do things quicker,

like paying bills20

17 Why: The Importance of Digital Inclusion, Digital Unite, 2011 http://digitalunite.com/help-others-get-online/digital-inclusion-housing-and-communities/why-importance-digital-inclusion 18 Digital Competencies in the Digital Agenda, The European Commission, 2011 https://ec.europa.eu/digital-agenda/sites/digital-agenda/files/KKAH12001ENN-chap5-PDFWEB-5.pdf 19 BT – Valuing Digital Inclusion, 2014 http://www.btplc.com/Betterfuture/ConnectedSociety/Creatingpossibilities/Valueofdigitalinclusion/Valuing-Digital-Inclusion.pdf


Access to advice, information and knowledge e.g. using ‘Google’ for information or

TripAdvisor reviews to book a holiday

Improved communication and engagement with family and friends e.g. reduced

social isolation, nearly three quarters (72%) of internet users have a social media

profile like facebook, compared to 22% in 200721. 29% of people say that staying in

contact with family and friends was one of the major reasons for getting online22

Enhanced democratic and civil participation e.g. evident from social media surge

during the Independence Referendum, being able to communicate with your MP/MSP

directly online, the rise of organisations such as Change.org

Improved health and well-being e.g. through Telehealth and Telecare services and

self management of care using technology including falls prevention alerts, bed sensors

or using Skype to meet your doctor

During the consultation one respondent shared how it feels not to have access to a computer

and the internet;

“getting access to the internet when you do not have a computer is soul destroying

when everyone else these days has access” (An adult learning course participant)

*Convert to Infographic and add Case Study example

20 Why: The Importance of Digital Inclusion, Digital Unite, 2011 http://digitalunite.com/help-others-get-online/digital-inclusion-housing-and-communities/why-importance-digital-inclusion 21 Statistics from Ofcom: Adults’ Media Use and Attitudes Report, 2015. http://stakeholders.ofcom.org.uk/market-data-research/other/research-publications/adults/media-lit-10years/ 22 Across the Divide: Carnegie Trust UK, April 2013 http://www.carnegieuktrust.org.uk/CMSPages/GetFile.aspx?guid=7324c775-a74a-47d6-b9ad4a4c173087a3



http://www.carnegieuktrust.org.uk/CMSPages/GetFile.aspx?guid=7324c775-a74a-47d6-b9ad4a4c173087a3


Who are digitally excluded?

One in five UK households do not have basic internet services in their home. However we

know that counting the number of broadband connections or mobile internet devices in use

does not indicate digital participation. In order to measure digital exclusion we need to work

out how to measure digital participation. We are following the Scottish Centre for Voluntary

Organisations (SCVO) lead on this where they have adopted a definition of basic digital

skills developed by Go ON UK, the UK’s leading digital skills charity. These basic digital skills

enable digital participation;

1. Managing information (Find, manage and store digital information and content)

2. Communicating (Communicate, interact, collaborate, share and connect with others)

3. Transacting (Purchase and sell goods and services, organise your finances, and

register for and use digital government services)

4. Problem solving (Increase independence and confidence by solving problems using

digital tools and finding solutions)

5. Creating (Engage with communities and create basic digital content)

In each of these areas there are things that people and organisations should be able to do, as

well as things they need to be aware of to stay safe23

The numbers in Scotland

In their first annual report Digital Participation in Action (July 2015), SCVO explain ‘...one in

five adults in Scotland lacks basic digital skills.’ This adds up to about 800,000 people aged 16

or over in Scotland and which extrapolates to 26,000 in Renfrewshire. Amongst those who

lack basic digital skills in the UK, three quarters are offline, but one quarter already have

internet access (this shows clearly why just counting the number of broadband connections

isn't sufficient). Cut by age, seven in ten are aged 55 or over. Cut by social grade, seven in ten

23 Go ON UK, Basic Digital Skills, 2015 http://www.go-on.co.uk/basic-digital-skills/


are in low income households. There is no particular reason to think that the picture in

Scotland is markedly different24. In 2011 when the Scottish Government undertook regression

analysis of the Scottish Household Survey, which indicated similar findings where

demographic factors such as age, income, educational qualifications, working status, disability

and deprivation are key indicators of lack of digital participation25.

Research shows that the common barriers to digital participation include

1. Skills - represents ability, levels of competence and confidence using devices

2. Access - represents infrastructure, speed and availability of local amenities that

provide internet access

3. Cost - represents device cost, a broadband subscription or monthly fees for mobile

data

4. Motivation - ties everything together and can often be the factor that reduces or

removes barriers. A lack of motivation may be the result of aspects such as fear,

causing the user to avoid engaging with digital world due to apprehensions around

safety or privacy26

The challenge is complex and requires person centered solutions.

24

Digital Participation in action Annual Report, 2015 http://digital.scvo.org.uk/files/digital-participation-annual-report-2015.pdf 25 Scottish Government, Digital Participation in Scotland: Review of Evidence, 2011 http://www.gov.scot/Publications/2011/12/22155754/0 26 Go ON UK, Basic Digital Skills, 2015 http://www.go-on.co.uk/common-themes/


Digital exclusion in Renfrewshire

Using the findings in the previous section along with evidence from different sources and

council accessible data sets we believe that in Renfrewshire those who are digitally excluded

are most likely to be in one or more of the following categories;

Older adults (+65)

Disabled or those who have a long term health condition

In Poverty (not working, low paid work, in social housing, living in a deprived

area)

Based on this information above we have created a Renfrewshire map of digital exclusion

hotspots based on known digital exclusion indicators measured across datazones.


The map will guide us in targeting limited resources in area’s with the highest levels of digital

exclusion and poverty. There areas are colour coded to show clusters of datazones with high

scores. Datazones with the highest levels of digital exclusion include Ferguslie Park, Paisley

West End, Shortroods, Cartside, Charleston, Johnstone Town Centre, Williamsburgh.

Data zones make available small area statistics. The data zone geography covers the whole

of Scotland with a total of 6,505 data zones. Data zones are groups of Census output areas

which have populations of between 500 and 1000 people (average around 800 people per

data zone). Digital exclusion indicators used in this exercise to derive a combined maximum

score of eight are:

Lives in 0-20% most deprived areas (split in four 5% discrete divisions);

Aged 65 years and over;

Never worked or long term unemployed;

Suffers a long term health problem or disability with activities limited a lot;

Lives in social housing

A full report with of the data analysis that informed the creation of this map can be provided on

request.

However we know that 1 in 5 homes across Scotland do not have basic internet services and

others may have a limited connection and these homes may not be identified on the map

above. We recognise there is a need to challenge therefore this will be the focus of the

Connectivity workstream within the Digital Strategy. Solutions will innovate to achieve the ‘art

of the possible’. The Connectivity workstream will also link up with the current Digital Scotland

Superfast Broadband programme which aims to have around 85% of premises in Scotland

with access to fibre broadband by the end of 2015 and 95% by the end of 201727.

27

The Digital Scotland Superfast Broadband Programme, 2014 http://www.digitalscotland.org/superfast-broadband/the-programme/

http://www.digitalscotland.org/superfast-broadband/the-programme/


The digital participation landscape in Renfrewshire

We have identified many pockets of digital participation activities taking place across

Renfrewshire inside and out of the council. Below is a high level overview but we acknowledge

that not all initiatives have been accounted for. This reinforces the need for increased co-

ordination and the need to define and deliver a baseline ‘core digital offer’. Initial findings

indicate that council services providing the majority of digital support services are;

- Libraries

- Adult Learning (in partnership with Employability Services)

Libraries

Renfrewshire Libraries currently provide free wifi and 123 public access computers in across

12 libraries which equates to 280,000 hours of bookable personal computer (PC) time per

year. Library staff will provide assistance on demand to users whenever possible, and will also

offer assistance by appointment when possible. Some libraries offer individual and small group

sessions using tablet technology.

Adult Learning

Adult Learning offer a range of digital skills courses and also work in partnership with the

Employability Service to provide an employability programme throughout Renfrewshire which

offers ‘Work Clubs’ and access to essential computer technology for job seekers for 50 weeks

of the year. Adult learning take a holistic approach to supporting adults at their own pace and

identifying additional learning and development opportunities.

Renfrewshire Digital Directory

The digital directory contains details of where the public can access all library and community

learning digital support services described above.


Other digital support initiatives

There are various digital participation initiatives that have taken place recently or are

underway in Renfrewshire. The following are just some examples;

Reaching Older Adults Renfrewshire (ROAR) digital tasters in partnership with

Smartcare, United4Health;

YMCA Renfrew intergenerational digital project;

Housing - Gallowhill intergenerational digital project, Glencairn and Rowan Court social

space where one is seeking wifi, the other has self funded broadband for shared use;

Schools including Mossvale p5-7 digital leaders, St Fergus (digital parent and pupil

project), Kirklandneuk Primary, Gleniffer High run a social enterprise Silver Fox Surfers;

The Disability Resource Centre (DRC) has various digital classes and group’s for

example using digital including the World War I history, science using digital media

such as film, and

Quarriers the Social Care Charity run an innovative Digital Inclusion Service called

Go4IT supporting disabled children and adults.

Some of these initiatives have been one off events or short term support sessions relying on

short term or limited funding. In speaking to all of these services the common themes are:

don’t have enough staff resource to meet the rising need

volunteers have been key to providing crucial 1:1 support

digital support is not a service priority

more resource is required to ensure long term sustainability

These services and initiatives have responded to a need, a need that is only set to grow.

There is a real energy and commitment to do more. It is clear we need a strategic coordinated

approach to join up work and share learning and resources.


Consultation results

Throughout the stakeholder engagement period over 37 different organisations/groups and

services were represented and consulted with. The consultation took different forms including

structured discussion, unstructured discussion, online surveys and information sessions, either

in groups or on a one to one basis. Some of the organisations/groups were involved in more

than one form of engagement and many of these also passed the online survey or questions

to others in their service to allow us to reach a wider audience. We have now collected over

170 survey results from service users/individuals and service providers.

Digital Participation questions were added to the 2015 Public Social Services Panel Survey

(involving over 2,000 citizens). The results indicate a need for increased promotion and

marketing of digital support services, 49% of respondents said they needed more digital skills

support and indicated an overall positive response to future online council services.

We consulted on 3 key themes;

Access to Internet

Access to Technology

Digital Skills

We also asked about; Barriers to going online, Benefits to being online

We kept the questions open ended to encourage unrestricted thinking and to stimulate

imagination, however this did require increased workload in the collation and analysis of the

responses and grouping these into common themes. The following results are a combination

of face to face and online individual and group consultation. We have included a small number

of quotes however all additional quotes can be found in Appendix 2.


Q1. How can we improve access to Internet?

Free Wifi - Over half of respondents 52% said free wifi, however over half specified the way to

do this would be to provide free wifi in local public buildings. Some citied issues with this in

regards to limited opening hours of some services such as libraries. Some examples given

were of benefit claimants who had to sit outside the library to pick up the wifi signal on their

phone to maintain their claimant commitment.

“Increase free convenient access at libraries, community centres, church halls, public

buildings, schools, malls and supermarkets, cafes etc”

“Be more innovative about where people are actually going”

“Make it free for low income households”


Q2. How can we improve access to Technology

Free Technology in key locations – 40% of respondents said that technology needed to be

made available in local accessible public locations along with outreach.

“I don’t think 'only' setting up a central point of contact is enough, you would likely have to

engage people in their own homes to show the benefits. People would need a reason to

change what they are doing, if being online could benefit them, then these benefits must be

shown in a realistic way. It’s not enough to say you can save money on bills when also

suggesting the person will have to pay more to be online in the first place”

“make tablets/computers available for free use such as in shelter housing complex, or

community centres”

“Technology hubs which provided support and access to technology would be a great addition

to town centres in Renfrewshire”


Q3. How can we improve Digital Skills?

Training – over half of respondents 53% highlighted the need for more training on basic digital

skills, one to one and targeted group training.

“More courses, drop in help at more venues. Pop up Help in empty shops for example ?”

“By first of all finding specific needs and making it of individual needs centred if possible”

“more than 30 mins with support , relaxed support at own pace”

“Having the correct type of trainer is crucial. The attitude, skills and personality have to be

correct to get the best results”


Analysis

The top three common themes are represented in the table below

Internet Access Free Wifi in key

locations

IT Infrastructure Training

Tech Access Free tech in key

locations

Grants Training

Digital Skills Increased Training Training delivered by

local services

Increased Trained

Staff

It is clear from the results above there is a need for increased Digital Skills training provision

by skilled trainers (person centred) across various local community locations. Key locations

(places people go) and local service delivery were identified as important key enablers for

digital participation. Respondents described key locations as libraries and community centres

but that this should be widened out to include schools, supermarkets, church halls, job

centres, internet cafes, sheltered housing, town halls and local services working with the

public. Accessibility was also highlighted in terms of the building opening hours and physical

access, and accessibility of the technology and training.

Overall the solution needs to focus on increased access to;

Technology

Wifi

Training

Trained staff

Across wide range of key locations in accessible buildings


Different services may offer different levels of provision such as level;

1. Wifi Access

2. Wifi and Technology Access

3. Wifi and Technology Access, Light touch Training/Support

4. Wifi and Technology Access, Basic Training/Support

5. Wifi and Technology Access, Intensive Training/Support

In summary there is a need for Digital Support Services across a range of accessible

Renfrewshire locations providing various levels of access, training and support. Defining

current levels of provision across Renfrewshire could be used to inform a marketing campaign

to raise awareness and help identify gaps.


Our approach

Partnership is king

Digital exclusion is a complex challenge and cannot and should not be met by any one

organisation or group. We need to co-ordinate and share our resources, knowledge and

energy to achieve a shared vision. We are all responsible for closing the digital divide.

Targeted

As highlighted previously those who can benefit the most from technology are those most

likely to be digitally excluded and face multiple barriers. We want to tackle the issue head on.

In line with the Tackling Poverty Agenda and to ensure we make most effective use of the

available resource, we will target those impacted by poverty across each target group. In this

initial phase of the plan we will target;

Older adults (in poverty)

Disabled or those who have a long term health condition (in poverty)

Poverty (not working, in low paid work, in social housing, living in deprivation)

We believe this focus will ensure that digital participation becomes a major component of our

approach to tackling deep rooted social and economic inequalities across Renfrewshire. 1 in 5

adults in Scotland lack basic digital skills and we realise that includes our workforce. We

want to lead from the front by looking at ways we can ensure that a key part to work force

development is basic digital skills training to benefit them in and out of work. We want to target

our council staff who may fall into the categories above and have no or limited access to

technology. Longer term we want to support and encourage our community partners to do the

same. Another group we want to focus on are Looked After Children in terms of their right to

access the internet.


As referred to earlier a map of digital exclusion hot spots has been produced to ensure we

prioritise and target any additional resource correctly. This also supports the ‘network effect’

identified in the Royal Society of Edinburgh’s report on ‘Spreading the Benefits of Digital

Participation’ where they identified that a key motivator of digital participation is belonging to a

community whose members are predominantly online. If, as the report argues, the main

method of communication of an individual’s peers is digital, then the more likely that person

will be to decide to get online28.

Local works best

Digital Participation is a complex picture and from the consultation results, latest research and

current best practice we know that a local service and community led partnership approach

works best where relationships of mutual understanding and trust already exist. Recent

research by the Carnegie UK Trust on Digital Participation in Dumfries and Kirkcaldy in 2014

indicated that ‘78% of potential users in Kirkcaldy were most likely to seek assistance to get

online from friends and family compared to 43% going to the library. Overall results are

represented by the diagram below’29. Based on these findings we believe family and friends

are a huge untapped resource and have an important role to play in ‘local works best’.

28 Spreading the Benefits of Digital Participation, the Royal Society of Edinburgh, April 2014 https://www.royalsoced.org.uk/1058_SpreadingtheBenefitsofDigitalParticipation.html 29 Digital Participation in Dumfries and Kirkcaldy, Carnegie UK Trust, 2014 http://www.carnegieuktrust.org.uk/getattachment/58fbdf46-b8a3-4d73-8fa4-5e4c4b07410a/Digital-Participation-in-Dumfries-and-Kirkcaldy.aspx

https://www.royalsoced.org.uk/1058_SpreadingtheBenefitsofDigitalParticipation.html


It’s about people not technology30

We agree with the conclusions drawn from the ‘SCVO Digital Participation in Action Annual

Report, July 2015’ that digital participation is not about the technology itself or, being an expert

in all things digital. It’s about the ‘personal hook’ the motivation for taking those first steps in

using technology. It’s about getting technology to do what you need it to do, nothing more, and

that the best way of learning is by giving it a go. Everyone will have different needs and it’s

important to remember “one size doesn’t fit all” and to be mindful of accessibility.

30

SCVO Digital Participation in Action Annual Report, July 2015 http://digital.scvo.org.uk/about/annual-report-2015/


Recommendations

1. Reviewing, Co-ordinating and Promoting what we do already

Reviewing

We propose a co-ordinated and strategic approach going forward by developing an

overarching Digital Strategy with Digital Participation at the core. This approach is

based on Scottish Government and Glasgow City Council Digital Strategies. The Digital

Strategy will be overseen by a Digital Leadership Group made up of council leads and

community planning partners. A community led Digital Participation Reference Group

chaired by the CEO of Engage (Renfrewshire Thirds Sector Interface) will shape the

strategy and ensure a joined up approach. Please see the proposed Digital Strategy

model in Appendix 3.

Use the consultation findings to share gaps or areas for improvement in current digital

support provision in libraries and adult learning (and other services if identified) and

consider directing resources to target digitally excluded groups identified in the plan

Ensure there is a minimum core digital offering delivered by Libraries and Community

Education and Adult Learning. By "core digital offer" we mean a free entitlement for all

citizens to some level of support or training in digital skills, and some level of access to

connectivity and computer equipment. The definitions of those levels could be decided

later. Assess the feasibility of delivering this, provide recommendations, and obtain

approval for implementation.

Carry out a data gathering exercise to identify all digital participation activity and define

levels of digital support provided across Renfrewshire

Sign up the SCVO Digital Participation Charter

Co-ordinating


Develop a Digital Participation Group made up of public, private and third sector staff

and citizens and chaired by the CEO of Engage. The group will oversee the Digital

Strategy, share and shape practice, stimulate new thinking and become a collective

voice/reference group. The group will link up with others such as the Glasgow Digital

Participation Group to share learning and best practice.

Developing the digital directory further to include additional digital support services

Develop a mechanism to enable an online search for digital support services that

includes an online digital participation map

Explore ways of coordinating digital skills training, resource and measurement across

the council using Go ON UK ‘s definition and outcomes based framework

Integrate Digital Participation into Telehealth/Telecare, Health and Social Care

Partnership based on the need for staff to have basic digital skills

Promoting

Coordinated internal and external marketing campaign, call to action, digital festival,

digital hero (volunteer awards), digital directory, development of a digital search online,

digital participation map

Experiment with different forms of digital engagement

2. Building capacity in existing services that work with the key priority

groups and pilot new approaches

Building capacity

Consult with existing services and discuss their local digital participation strategy or work in

partnership with them to create one. Work with partners to identify resource to deliver digital

participation within existing structures.


Explore funding opportunities to resource digital support services across a range of accessible

Renfrewshire locations providing a various levels of access, training and support to our priority

groups for example;

Digital Participation Officer (trained staff in local services working with digitally excluded

groups)

Digital Volunteer Coordinator (realising the untapped potential of family and friends,

digital volunteers for all digital support services with a remit to support the Digital

Participation Champion and set up volunteer led Coderdojo coding clubs)

Digital Funding Officer (to identify potential funding and support the council and

community partners to bid)

A Digital Challenge Fund (to enable local community groups to bid for money to deliver

digital support services in the way they believe will work best)

Set up a working group of front line staff to design and test a basic digital skills training

programme which will include literacy/numeracy support. If approved, a pilot could run

to test and evaluate the approach for potential roll out across council staff and building

the digital skills capacity of the council workforce in partnership with current IT training

service delivery

Pilot new approaches

We want to explore new ways of providing digital support using a community led approach to

design and develop new ideas. We will work with the Digital Participation Group to prioritise

and identify viable options and work these up to a fully costed project then going onto seek

funding. Some initial ideas based on best practice and the consultation include;

Vocational Digital Skills Education Programme in Schools linking with Business

After school coding clubs led by volunteer programming students


Digital School Grant

Digital to work scheme

Disability Gaming Service

Community led free wifi pilot

Community groups get online

Social enterprise internet cafe

A Digital (Library) Learning Centre

All ideas from the consultation will be collated together for future use.

3. Influencing Policy, Procurement and Practice

Creating stronger links to local Government, National Bodies such as SCVO and

Technology Business

Explore funding of research into digital participation with Renfrewshire as a case study

Promote the need for digital participation i.e. wifi enabled buildings through

procurement or funding bids and factored into service costing’s

Regeneration, building internet ready homes and spaces

“Building digital participation into everything we do”


Measuring success

We propose to produce an annual digital participation report. Go ON UK the leading Digital

Skills Charity has just launched a new digital skills framework to evidence the economic and

social benefits of digital participation. Intended as a single, flexible template for tracking digital

inclusion in the UK, and evaluating activities locally. We will pilot the use of this approach to

identify if it will provide a coordinated, consistent approach to measuring digital participation

across Renfrewshire.

The Digital Inclusion Outcomes Framework from Go ON UK is designed to help evidence the

wider benefits of digital inclusion. The framework’s starting point is that getting people online

and building their digital skills is a means to a broader end: that is, improved outcomes in

many aspects of people’s lives, as mapped out below31.

Digital Inclusion Benefits Roadmap

31

Go ON UK’s Digital Inclusion Outcomes Framework https://www.digitalskills.com/digital-inclusion-outcomes

https://www.digitalskills.com/digital-inclusion-outcomes


Additional measures

Benchmarking current levels of Digital Exclusion in Renfrewshire using 2015 Public

Services Panel (PSP) Survey Results and making comparisons in 2016 (we added a

digital participation section)

Using data analysis to track and identify levels of digital exclusion where possible

The Scottish Household Survey (using the Renfrewshire data from the digital section)

Continued consultation with public, private and third sector organisations’ staff, service

users, volunteers and citizens through the Renfrewshire Digital Participation Group

Ideally a more in depth benchmark exercise should be carried out across Renfrewshire prior to

the implementation of the digital participation plan and digital strategy. This would require

additional research resource potentially in partnership with UWS or West College Scotland

and Carnegie Trust UK.


Appendices


Appendix 1 - Who and how we consulted

Throughout the stakeholder engagement period over 37 different organisations/groups and

services were represented and consulted with across public, private and third sector. The

consultation took different forms including structured discussion, unstructured discussion,

online surveys and information sessions, either in groups or on a one to one basis.

Some of the organisations/groups were involved in more than one form of engagement and

many of these also passed the online survey or questions to others in their service to allow us

to reach a wider audience. We have now collected 170 survey results from service

users/individuals and service providers.

We carried out an Equalities and Human Rights Impact Assessment (EQHRIA) focus group

with a range of people including representatives from the Diversity Equality and Accessibility

Renfrewshire (DEAR) Group and Digital Participation questions were added to the 2015 Public

Social Services Panel Survey (involving over 2,000 citizens). Consultation and engagement

will continue.

We consulted on 3 key themes;

Access to Internet

Access to Technology

Digital Skills

We also asked about; Barriers to going online, Benefits to being online

We kept the questions open ended to encourage unrestricted thinking and to stimulate

imagination, however this did require increased workload in the collation and analysis of the

responses and grouping these into common themes.

List of Organisations and Groups / Individuals Consulted

No Organisation/Group Structured Unstructured

Discussion

Online

Survey

Information

Session/Plan

Shared

1 DEAR

2 Engage Renfrewshire


3 Sensory Impaired Group

4 Linstone Housing

Association

5 Quarriers Charity

6 Renfrewshire Citizens

Advice Bureau

7 Renfrewshire Disability

Resource Centre

8 Renfrewshire Tenants

and Residents

Association

9 Renfrewshire

Development Trust

10 Renfrewshire Community

Planning Partnership

11 Renfrew YMCA

12 Our Place Our Families

13 RAMH

14 Renfrewshire Carers

Centre

15 Libraries

16 University of the West of

Scotland

17 West College Scotland

18 Renfrewshire Health and

Social Care Partnership

19 Community Learning

20 Glasgow City Council

(Glasgow Digital)

21 Keep Young at Heart

(Sally Logan)

22 Employability

23 Schools TBA

24 Social Work

25 Linwood Community

Learning Group

26 Renfrewshire Leisure

27 Renfrewshire Chamber of

Commerce

28 Sainsbury’s

29 Community Capacity

Building - Engage

30 Tackling Poverty Welfare

Reform Steering Group

31 Customer Access Project

32 Digital Steering Group


33 SCVO Digital Team

Sally Dyson

34 Equalities and Human

Rights Policy Lead

35 Corporate Management

Team

36 Renfrewshire

Empowering

Communities Forum

37 Wheatley Group

Evelyn McDowall

38 Youth Services

John Kyle


Appendix 2 – Extended consultation results and quotes

Q1. How can we improve access to Internet?

“Increase free convenient access at libraries, community centres, church halls, public

buildings, schools, malls and supermarkets, cafes etc”

“Be more innovative about where people are actually going”

“Make it free for low income households”

Improved Infrastructure – Almost a fifth of respondents commented on the need for

improved speed, signal strength and coverage and ease of access.

“In library have a pc set up to search internet without the need for customer to logon”

“Community Planning – Housing New Build & Upgrades should include broadband

accessibility”

Training – 11% of respondents said they needed more guidance and training on how to use

wifi and many comments asked for more classes and more staff support.

“Avoid assuming everyone knows how to use it and what level of skill they have”

“More Supported drop in periods at Libraries and Learning centres”

Promotion and Marketing – Not far behind with 8% saying wifi access points should be

advertised more and in many cases people were not aware that libraries offered free wifi.

“I think there are already good places to access the internet in Renfrewshire, and I personally

have seen the rise of Wifi within the Libraries. What I think people are lacking is the knowledge


of where these spots are. I would suggest a map of internet areas which people could use to

find out where to go to get online”

Q2. How can we improve access to Technology?

“I don’t think 'only' setting up a central point of contact is enough, you would likely have to

engage people in their own homes to show the benefits. People would need a reason to

change what they are doing, if being online could benefit them, then these benefits must be

shown in a realistic way. It’s not enough to say you can save money on bills when also

suggesting the person will have to pay more to be online in the first place”

“make tablets/computers available for free use such as in shelter housing complex, or

community centres”

“Technology hubs which provided support and access to technology would be a great addition

to town centres in Renfrewshire”

Grant for Technology, subsidised cost or lease – 10% respondents said cost was a barrier

“recycle centres for less affluent families to be able afford them, lease agreements to counter

poverty issues”

“There are often additional costs for people with disabilities and it would be good to have some

cost sharing project to help with these extra payments”

“Something similar to the council bike scheme to help people have technology who wouldn’t

normally be able to afford it”


Training – 10% said they wanted more training in more community locations and more trained

staff.

“have more learning centres”

“More community access points apart from libraries”

“improve staff knowledge and awareness through better training on technology i.e. tablets and

devices”

“If you are delivering digital skills training i.e. internet safety skills for older people please don’t

hold these sessions in the school environment as older people may have had negative

experiences in school”

PC Infrastructure – 8% commented on the importance of computers being up to date and

in good working order.

“By keeping public PCs in library current and up to date”

“Interfaces – Communication/surveys/snapchat/keeping up to date with changing systems”

Q3. How can we improve Digital Skills?

“experts in each location, readily available training”

“More courses, drop in help at more venues. Pop up Help in empty shops for example?”

“By first of all finding specific needs and making it of individual needs centred if possible”


“more than 30 mins with support , relaxed support at own pace”

“Having the correct type of trainer is crucial. The attitude, skills and personality have to be

correct to get the best results”

Local Service Delivery – 15% said that training should be delivered by local services

“Hold classes in libraries but due to lack of staff and some staff knowledge this isn’t possible in

all libraries”

“People to work in persons own home”

“Linking in with partners who work well with most vulnerable such as JCP, social work etc”

“Internet cafe/social enterprise cafe for whole community benefit”

“Variety of community based projects using local people – would be a good pilot idea”

“People will be more encouraged to learn when in an environment which is

comfortable/familiar to them”

Increased/Trained staff – 13% respondents cited the need for increased trained staff.

“Staff resources are a big issue and there is the opportunity for great work to be completed

with more people on board”

“Digital Staff – Leaders”


“Increased staff in libraries and support sessions in community groups to encourage more

isolated community groups”

“To finance more tutors with training with the necessary skills working with the elderly etc”

Appendix 3 – Proposed Digital Strategy Model

the digital participation plan 2016 final draft for approval...prepared by diane webb, digital...

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