My talk at the NHF Conference on 14th February 2013 in London. Discussing the urgency of helping people to use the internet, particularly with a view to the new Welfare Reform. Interesting for all digital inclusion and/or housing people.

1. Section Divider: Heading intro here.
Get Ready, Get Online
Helen Milner
Chief Executive, Online Centres Foundation
14 February 2013

3. Social Housing: You care about
• Social Justice: equality, improving lives
• Financial Security: keeping your businesses
afloat
= therefore you need to think about digital
inclusion

4. You will be a digital
business in 3 - 5 years
The question is how and how
fast

5. For most citizens the internet is
part of everyday life:
UK consumers buy the most online
per capita globally
Boston Consulting Group “The internet
economy in the G20”, 2012

6. 82% of internet users say they have saved
money in the last six months by using the
internet
with 46% saying they’ve made significant
savings
Source: Ofcom UK Adults’ Media Literacy Report, 2011

7. Comparison before users lives – before and after
UK online centres
Feel less concerned
I do not feel concerned about my levels
and after using the
of qualifications, training or skills
about skills, work
n=75
100%
internet and health
80%
60% I do not feel concerned
I communicated as much
about my work position
as I would like to with friends
n=51
40%
Communicate 20%
more 0%
I communicated as much I do not feel concerned about
as I would have liked my health
with my family n=75
Feel more connected to
local community
I felt part of my local community
"Yes" Before "Yes" After
“Does the internet improve lives?”
Freshminds April, 2009

8. But, 16m adults are not frequent
and competent internet uesrs

9. Everyday use is exploding for many,
creating a bigger divide
Percentage UK population use of the internet
Source: ONS up to Q3 2011

10. Digital can be for everyone
• 82% of adults have ever been online
(ONS)
• 79% are regular internet users (BBC),
meaning that 1 in 5 do not use the internet
• 71% C2DE
• 51% over 65
• 50% no qualifications
2012

11. Many non or infrequent internet
users live in social housing

12. UK online centres: 5,000 Community Partners

13. Not owned, managed or funded by us
Centre search and free phone number search
(one database for UK)

14. No such thing as a typical centre.
All centres do something else (and support digital skills).
Most centre partners run outreach sessions in care homes,
pubs, clubs, village halls.

16. Supporting Volunteers and Digital
Champions
●
Supported and trained
over 3000 volunteers pa
●
Online “Become a
Digital Champion”
course
●
“Supporting your
community to get
online” workshops
We held a Supporting your community workshop at our City Library,
e had lots of opportunity to network and gain fresh approaches to
lunteer working – would highly recommend and very much worth
ganising for our staff and volunteers " Sarah Graham - Project Officer Newcastle Libraries

17. Click to watch video

18. Clive: One in a
Million
• Clive was made redundant at
56. He has now found work
• One unemployed person costs
the government £8,000 a year
• 8% of 1m = 80,000
• 80,000 people @ £8,000 each
= £640m a year
£640m a year

19. Government Digital Strategy
6 November 2012
Digital by Default
• “Central Government where possible
must become a Digital Organisation. These
days the best service organisations deliver
online everything that can be delivered
online. This cuts their costs dramatically
and allows access to information and
services at times and in ways convenient to
the users rather than the providers.”
Francis Maude

20. £1.7bn - £1.8bn a
year
Estimate savings moving services
offline to digital channels
Government Digital Strategy, 6 November 2012

21. Applied to your business: 1000 people x 2
contacts saved a month = £133,800 a
year
Costs per Saving if
contact (SOCITM shifted online
research 2012)
Face to face £8.62 £8.47
Phone £2.83 £2.68
Online £0.15

22. Universal Credit
• 12m people affected
• Goal for 80% to interact online
• Estimate that c. 6m people don’t have the skill
level currently to be interact unaided
• Role for Government, Housing Providers, and
orgs like Online Centres Foundation to do
something to help those 6m people

23. Digital + Welfare Reform + You
• Be a digital business for all your customers
• More than 50% of your tenants are (probably)
online
• A digital strategy drives digital inclusion
• Driving efficiency and equality
• Welfare Reform:
• Ensure your customers are able and willing to
claim benefits
• Enable your customers to pay you

24. Some inspiration from your peers

25. Wakefield District Housing
• 80 volunteers (employees & tenants) have helped 640+
tenants to get online so far this year
• All Board, Executive Management and SMT meetings
are now digital through the use of iPads
• Top 3 tiers of management use their iPads to support
mobile/flexible working, moving towards paperless
• Field staff to use tailored mobile apps (by March 2014)
• New ‘responsive’ website for any internet-ready device,
including mobile phones and games consoles
• Wireless WAN (2013), all offices & independent living
schemes

26. Click to watch video

27. Family Mosiac
• A digital strategy agreed: focuses on Care and Support
• 200 connections supporting wi-fi hubs in care & support
centres – touching 5,000 service users
• Great deal from BT
• Currently asking “how to assess and feedback benefits?”
• Next step: More broadband to support issues around
DWP and Universal Credit
• Real good news stories: a young service user in has
created www.livingaloneonline.co.uk
• “...there is a huge opportunity to improve lives...”
• “...starting small is better than doing nothing..”

28. Peabody Trust
• Have a cross organisation Digital Strategy led by CEO
• UK Online Community Capacity Builders in 2010
• All its sheltered schemes have pcs & internet access
• 45 trained volunteers (Digital Champions) support
learners on a 1-2-1 basis, learning at their own pace
and focus on areas of their interest
• Formal ICT training programme, branding this Net
Worx in 15 locations (20 by March 2013)
• Peabody has made a commitment to get 80% of their
residents online by March 2013

29. Peabody’s revenues team
will deliver roadshows
with its Digivan.
Roadshows will target
residents affected,
providing information and
support.
Digital Champions are
being trained to offer
support with opening
bank accounts online
and searching for jobs.

30. Birmingham City Council
• Launched new mobile apps, integrated into back end
systems so that citizens can access services on the
move and provides greater incentives to go online
• Universal credit pilot: all new housing tenancy
agreements within pilot area will be online using
digital logbooks as primary point of contact and will
provide the primary route to access benefits
• Plan focuses next on telecare and telehealth, and
delivering personalized and targeted services

31. Mobile/tablets part of the mix
• Breezie – trialed in
Barchester Homes,
linking older
people in care
homes with their
family via a new
tablet interface

33. 5.2 million households in the UK without
internet access: Why?
• MOTIVATION: 54% said they did not have a
connection because they felt they didn’t need
one
• SKILLS: 22% cited a lack of internet skills
• ACCESS: 15% reported equipment costs were
too high; 14% said that the cost of connection
was too high; < 1% reported a lack of
broadband availability in their area as a reason
Source: ONS “Internet Access Households & Individuals” 2012

34. Need action in each of these areas
What can be done for free?
- signposting, free online
resources, volunteers
What can be done with
partners?
- Local UK online centres,
JCP, local employers
What needs investment to
make happen?
- Staff to organise
volunteers, computers in
foyers and common areas,
set up a ‘UK online centre’

35. Seven Point Plan
1. You will be a digital business in 3 - 5 years - the question
is how and how fast
2. This is a digital strategy that drives digital inclusion:
achieving efficiency and quality for everyone
3. Think about your existing headline KPIs and how digital
is going to help you to achieve those
4. Understand your digitally excluded residents and target
them
5. This is a change programme not a technology project
6. You need action in all three of the main barriers to take-
up: Motivation; Skills & Confidence; and Access
7. Start quickly - make small changes as soon as you can,
and don’t delay. Small actions help big change happen.

36. It’s not about technology, it’s all
about people

37. digitalhousinghub.ning.com
Please keep the conversation going and join the digital housing hub

38. Thank You
helen@ukonlinecentres.com
@helenmilner on twitter
www.ukonlinecentres.com
www.learnmyway.com
http://digitalhousinghub.ning.com/