Northumberland Community Development Network Response - Tinder Foundation Rural Research Project
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Northumberland Community
Development Network Response - Tinder
Foundation Rural Research Project
When Northumberland Community Development Network (NCDN) found we had been
successful in being selected to take part in a digital inclusion rural research project hosted
by the Tinder Foundation, we were delighted to have the opportunity to contribute to an
informed understanding of how digital inclusion initiatives happen in rural areas, and how
structures and support need to be adapted to take account of rural exclusion.
Key Facts about Northumberland
Northumberland is home to 316,000 people and covers an area 5013km 2
With 97% of its area classed as rural, the county is sparsely populated with 63
people per km2
Half of the county’s population live in the 3% of urban land found in the south
east of the county
A fifth of residents are aged over 65 years old
Deaths outweigh births but in-migration keeps the county’s population growing
Life expectancy at birth for males is 78 years and 82 years for females
9,000 residents (3%) classify themselves an non-white with the greatest number
of these being Asian
70% of the adult population are economically active
Fourth fifths of residents own their own home
Unemployment levels are broadly consistent with the national average
Almost one in ten of the population live in one of the most deprived areas of
England
Source: Northumberland Knowledge, Northumberland County Council i
Rural deprivation is characterised by distance from services, and many of Northumberland’s
rural population live at some distance from shops, schools and other services such as post
offices. There are clusters of people around the county’s market towns, many of which are
geared around attracting tourists, which means that local work opportunities are often low
paid and seasonal. In some market towns and villages, well over 40% of residents are over
60, with the more affluent, often those who have chosen to retire to Northumberland for its
beautiful surroundings, living mainly in their own homes, while many long-term residents
remain as tenants of the landowner estates. This contrasts with the county’s south east
urban areas of Wansbeck and Blyth Valley. Although these areas include some of the most
deprived wards in the country, with high numbers living in social housing, there is relatively
good online connectivity and access to services such as libraries, shops and education.
1Connectivity in Northumberland
NCDN works with iNorthumberland ii a partnership initiative with the aim of bringing
superfast broadband to homes and businesses across the county. The following shows the
current state of play, and illustrates the extent of the issues for people living in deep rural
areas.
2The focus on broadband, and also the orientation towards businesses being enabled as an
economic priority, can mean that those most digitally excluded at home are likely to remain
so for the longest. Also, while there is some commitment to join up the two related issues of
connectivity, and the need to address online access and skills, it is sometimes hard to make
this a reality. The County Council is very aware of the implications of the ‘digital by default’
culture within the benefits and welfare systems, and NCDN is working with other
community-based partners to develop ways of building people’s capacity to manage, in
areas where there access to computer equipment is limited. During our time as Community
Capacity Building lead, funded by UK Online Centres, NCDN focussed on improving links
between libraries and other community centres, and found a range of hurdles remained to
be tackled, particularly in rural areas. Our case study ‘Partnership with libraries in rural
communities’ iiimight prove useful reading to give more detailed insight into rural access.
How NCDN delivers online support in rural areas
NCDN delivers online support right across Northumberland, through a network of
volunteers. There are around 40 volunteers registered in our project, with about 15 of them
actively involved in more rural areas. Because of the huge distances between volunteers and
people generally, we have organised our project around three sub-areas, each of which has
a lead volunteer, whose role is to recruit, match and support both learners and volunteers
in their area, and generally to raise the profile of our offer, through the media and by
building partnerships. These lead volunteers cover huge areas – Hala Zaluczkowska leads in
the North area (from Morpeth to Berwick encompassing Wooler, Rothbury, Alnwick);
Gordon Stewart in the West area (Tynedale, Allendale and beyond); Julia Lyford in the South
east area (Wansbeck and Blyth Valley.)For the rural research we have concentrated on our
activity in the north and west areas.
For the research project we decided to identify six active rural volunteers, and to track their
support activities with 15 clients. The volunteers met clients who are based in:
Warkworth – a village between the north area market towns of Amble and Alnwick.
Amble – coastal fishing and market town
Berwick-upon-Tweed – a larger market town on the border with Scotland
Rothbury – small market town west of Alnwick and adjacent to the National Park
Beadnell – a coastal village near Seahouses, a coastal tourist area
Heddon-on-the-Wall – a village setting in Tynedale to
Hexham – main market town in Tynedale
Allendale – south of Hexham and about 35 miles west of Newcastle
Riding Mill – on southern border of Northumberland adjacent to rural areas of
Gateshead
Research Question Responses
Our work has been reported below using the key questions asked by the Tinder Foundation,
and using boxed quotes from volunteers to illustrate the points made.
3What mechanisms did you use to engage and recruit the learners - which was/were the
most effective?
The clients came forward through a range of routes.
Some were direct referrals from Age UK, our lead partner in the Comic Relief funded
project ‘Money Go Round’ targeting older people for support for financial inclusion
Others had attended information sessions run by our volunteers in various settings
including at:
o Lunch clubs for older people
o People attending broadband rollout events
o Carers groups
Others came forward from the volunteers’ own neighbourhoods, recruited through
word of mouth by our volunteers and their networks
Others came to their local rural library-based support sessions which are run by our
volunteers
The most effective route for making initial contact currently is through our briefing sessions
with a range of partner organisations. As well as those working with older people, we are
developing links on an ongoing basis with organisations such as WRVS, Youth Hostels
Association, local community development trusts, employability providers, shops, cafes and
galleries.
Did the needs of rural learners differ from your other learners and if so how?
Once we have made initial contact with individuals, we consult with them on the best
arrangements for them to be able to continue. Almost invariably, we have found that our
rural clients want, and benefit most from, one to one support sessions, sustained over a
period of time. Those who are able are generally happy to meet up in a public place, as long
as there is some chance of privacy secure WiFi connection. But the feel of this setup is quite
different to the support we have offered in more urban areas. In more urban settings there
are often IT suites, and there is also more of a culture of group learning. For instance in SE
Northumberland, we work with our partner Blyth Resource & Initiatives Centre (BRIC) where
groups of people gather in an IT suite, first of all to get some help with assessing what they
want to cover, then signing up to Online Basics. From then on, most regularly drop in to
continue their learning at their own pace, supported by a volunteer who is on hand if help is
needed. In rural areas, this approach simply isn’t sustainable:
The limited numbers of people living locally enough to community venues where
there are IT facilities, only rarely amount to ‘groups’ of people available at the same
time and place, to deliver support in this way. An exception to this norm is
sometimes possible when a group of people have an interest in a particular area,
such as learning about social media, or how to use tablets.
On 19th March a 'Twitter basics chat' was held in Bellingham Northumberland, a very
remote community. 10 local people attended to get help to develop social media
skills and as a result improving their life skills
4 Local venues often have limited opening hours
An elderly ,very intelligent, well travelled, affluent lady, residing outside a village in a
rural location, wanted to conduct a range of research but was prevented from doing
so due to slow internet speeds and a general lack of digital skills. She has learned to
seek out information via various online resources and continues to receive support.
The amount of time she can receive the support is determined by the time that the
local venue is open & volunteer availability
Bus services are infrequent, slow & expensive in rural areas and this adds to the
clients’ reluctance to travel to a nearby village for support, or for them to maintain
regular contact
A lady has been unable to attend other sessions due to poor transport, last week she did
manage to call into the Post office to ask if an earlier session could be held on the
morning other sessions are held. But she can only stay for approx. 45 mins due to
transport problems. The digital volunteer agreed but now the session / travel take over 8
hrs.
But she can only stay for approx. 45 mins due to transport problems.
We have found that people want support to understand and use their own
NCDN Digital volunteer
equipment more than to acquire skills on a public desktop.
An elderly lady living in a rural area was given a very old computer by her son, Volunteers
had to spend a long period cleaning the computer and updating it, he had used it for
business purposes. She was returned it in good order & was so that pleased how she
learned to use a computer that she went out bought an iPad.
The quality of WiFi connectivity in many rural areas can lead to many minutes lost of
a support session trying to get and stay online.
This learner suffers from various medical conditions that impact upon her ability to walk /
travel unreasonable distances or sit for lengthy periods of time. She has had several
operations and is expecting more in the future to hopefully improve her mobility. Her
condition affects her inability to become mobile for a few hours after awakening. She
resides in a rural location. She is one of the most enthusiastic learners I have met as she
sees the obvious benefits of being online now and in the future. After the initial session
she set about using the UK online Learn My Way course, staying behind well past the
session finishing. She didn't feel confident enough to continue on the course without a
volunteer looking after her on a 1 to 1 basis.
The next session knocked her back as she was frustrated by the very poor connectivity of
the computer at the venue. Although a new computer the internet access was so slow it
was causing more harm than good for her learning experience. This means also the
volunteer has to travel back to the venue yet again to take the training one simple step
further. She now has an e mail account set up which has helped but she really wanted to
view a You Tube video re a Crufts dog show exhibition her friend took part in, but the
access to the internet did not allow this.
5What delivery model/models did you use (online, offline or blended models)
In our information briefings, we have generally taken part in meetings where existing
groups regularly meet. This frequently means that there is no WiFi available to
support our presentation, so we have worked on an off-line version which shows still
of some important sites, such as the Learn My Way site. We have also embedded
short video links to illustrate some points in a fun way.
As illustrated above, our volunteers have experienced all kinds of frustrations with
attempted online sessions, so have had to spend time looking at IT skills such as
organising information, or using new software. When NCDN first purchased
equipment to enable us to create mobile access, we invested in some dongles, and
two mobiles which can become modems. Although these have occasionally worked,
in the main they have not enhanced the scope of what we can achieve, as either
they take too long to configure on the learner’s laptop, or it doesn’t connect at all.
The following commentary from our newest volunteer gives a useful overview of what it’s
like working with the complexities faced in supporting a rural learner:
I'm a very new Digital Volunteer, I've just completed two support sessions in total with a
retired lady in her seventies living in a small rural community. We are planning to do some
more sessions together; I think she may find another 2 or 3 helpful depending on the
progress she makes. It would be good to hold one of them in a local cafe / community
centre where there is Wi-Fi so she can experience this as her only previous attempt, on
holiday last summer, failed.
She has some computer experience but her husband's recent illness is forcing her to do
more online in order to keep up family communications and deal with their finances. Sadly
her confidence has been shaken by an unpleasant computer scam - she was targeted by
phone and the criminals managed to gain access to her computer and bank account. This is
now sorted and she is much more security conscious having had this bad experience, but it
is very sad that the elderly and vulnerable are targeted in this way.
Having said that she is getting her confidence back and is making steady progress. Some
tasks are new to her, others it is a matter of re-learning.
One problem she has in common with many older people is that of negotiating her way
through the mass of on-screen information and choices - and not just getting lost and
panicky as new info flashes up. However she is managing the mouse etc. pretty well now
and getting less nervous about "clicking" and exploring.
I am trying to focus on organising info now with her, so that it is easier for her to find, as
well as maintaining her security.
6What are the costs of engaging and delivering to learners from rural communities so
please maintain detailed records of these costs?
The biggest resource that have expended in supporting rural clients is the time of the
volunteers, who often have to travel for hours to participate. It is an important part of a
rural project that we make sure that funders and agencies are aware of the extent of the
social asset that the volunteers represent. It is an aspiration of our project that we find a
way of recording this as part of the overall value of our work.
Volunteers are also asked to travel as much as 70 miles to attend volunteer support
meetings. We aim to rotate the venues we use for these support meetings to share out the
burden but some volunteers are more able to travel distances than others. Because we are
not a centre-based project and because we travel around the county to create better
access, we also incur venue and also refreshment costs each time we get together.
A number of our support sessions inevitably take place in people’s homes, and we have a
commitment to ensure that any volunteers visiting people at home have an up to date DBS,
which we pay for. We also pay our area coordinators a small monthly payment in
recognition of their additional role. The project is also overseen by a paid project
coordinator, who takes responsibility for quality assurance, monitoring, building
partnerships, coordinating support and attracting funds.
If you used new connectivity options/solutions and technologies, what were they and did
they work?
We are in the process of deciding what new resources to acquire and are likely to explore
purchasing a number of tablets. During this programme, we have offered two sessions
specifically looking at using iPads, and as mobile internet access improves, this will improve
our chances of being online across more rural areas.
Did you attract a specific target group of learners within the overall target of their rurality
- and what was it about this project in particular that attracted them?
Currently NCDN’s main client group is the 55+ age group. This is in part because we are in a
partnership with Age UK to support this age group and carry out many promotional sessions
in older people’s groups; and also because older people are the main group that are digitally
excluded in Northumberland, in part because there are higher proportions of the rural
population who are older.
The way that we have promoted this project to older people is to invite those who attend
our briefing sessions to take part in a general consultation, to explore whether they are
resistant or open to using online services. We have found a whole range of attitudes, but
one of the key groups we have supported are those who have been given IT equipment by
their family as a means of staying in touch, and have felt in need of support to get going.
We have found that older people are more receptive to going online when NCDN has been
welcomed into their group to explain the benefits by the partner organisation that they are
familiar with. Sometimes, when the staff or volunteers in the groups we have attended have
7not been clearly briefed, their wariness can be transferred to the group, leading to a less
receptive response. We are dependent on these partnership connections in rural settings so
need to foster a very positive culture when building our connections with them.
A second and growing group of learners is people on welfare benefits, who are finding that
they need support to meet the demands of an increasingly online system. For rural people,
their access options can be very limited if the don’t have home-based internet and
equipment.
I came across this client in the library where I volunteer when I noticed him trying to
access the internet on a Library computer. During discussion I found he had had an
accident more than 2 years previously and was now receiving Job Seekers Allowance on
the understanding he actively pursued finding a job. It turned out he lived in rural
Northumberland, did not have a computer or mobile phone and the nearest point of
internet contact was Heddon Library which entailed a 15 mile each way journey. I
persuaded him to enrol on the Learn my way course and he soon developed good basic
computer skills. There was still the problem of the cost of travelling to the Library from his
home and NCDN was able to provide him with a laptop on loan BUT he had no internet
access and there was not a convenient wireless access point near where he lived. He
contacted BT his home phone company and explained his predicament; BT offered him
various packages but they were still more than he could afford. Eventually BT gave him 1
year of free Internet access which he gratefully accepted.
It would seem that the Jobcentre want those seeking work have an email address and the
applications are made on line. This clearly is a problem for some. This client gets an email
from the Jobcentre daily which contains the details of between 60 and 200 vacancies. He
is expected to look at each vacancy and apply on line or give a reason (from a dropdown
list) why he has not done so. He rarely gets any response to these applications. The
Jobcentre directed him to a service called Avanta which is meant to help in the job search,
but they seem to be very understaffed as this client has been waiting more than 3 months
for an interview.
Because of his rural location this client was unaware that free computer training was
available, no publicity was in Jobcentres. He had not heard of NCDN and only ended up at
Heddon Library after a relative living in Heddon mentioned that public access computers
were available.
While this learner has temporarily resolved his access issues, he represents a growing group
in rural Northumberland from whom round the clock internet access is increasingly being
expected. We hope to continue to work with the County Council and also social housing
providers to find ways of improving such people’s chances of participating in the ‘digital by
default’ culture.
Was it necessary to change the plans you'd made to deliver this project - if so why?
One of the aspects of the project that we knew would be an issue, was to record the
learner’s progress in a ‘linear’ way, using the online basics standard as a measure of
progress. This is because so many older people have strong views about what they do and
8don’t want support for, and imposing an external standard can sometimes seem
inappropriate.
This client is just over 65 and she can manage some basic things on the computer. She
uses Skype to talk to family and friends in America. She also sends emails. Quite often her
family will help her out if she has any problems. She runs classes in Dance and needed a
leaflet for a course she was running. She wasn't sure where to start and we went through
the process of setting out information in a leaflet that she could circulate and print off.
She is now thinking of doing other publicity materials to advertise her classes. For her
being able to access specific support meant she could get her activities known wider.
Another example is of someone who is fairly resistant and just trying it out at their own
pace:
An older man is currently residing in a residential home located in rural area. There is free
open wifi available there for all residents / visitors. His family & business roots are in
another County, he was the owner of a financial advice business, and all his staff used
computers. He sold the business 5 yrs ago. He had never touched a computer until today.
His interests include finance & horse racing, although he never places a bet.
He was shown various websites to help him gain a general understanding of how the
internet can be an option for him; he indicated that he wished to learn a bit more. He
progressed from a person with absolutely no internet knowledge to being able to open
website links on a laptop. A tablet & smart phone were also used during the session. The
gentleman had never used even the most basic types of mobile phones.
His fear of digital skills has mellowed a small amount, but there is a very long way to go
before he will attempt something more than just the odd touch on a mouse. Learn my
way is an option, but some way off as the gentleman although astute and intelligent is set
in his ways with no knowledge of even typing skills (never used a typewriter). A diplomatic
and careful long learning path will have to be adopted. A challenging but rewarding
session, the clients, digital volunteers & home staff enjoyed. This was the first session at
the home & for one of the volunteers, so not such a bad day.
NCDN also has other existing targets and outputs to achieve, such as ‘increased confidence
in making online transactions, and understanding the basics of online security. While these
areas are covered in the Online Basics programme, some volunteers are more comfortable
sharing their own knowledge of these skills without ‘signing people up’ to an external
programme. It is always challenging to expect volunteers to structure their support to
people around what they can see as external demands.
On the plus side, this project has improved our thinking, plans and systems to enable us to
track progress more effectively than in the past. One volunteer has used the ‘basic online
skills for individuals’ matrix at http://www.go-on.co.uk/opportunity/basic-online-skills in a
creative way to provide an updatable summary of what her learners have covered.
9Name Skills Communicate Find things Share personal
information
CS Activity Sent and received emails Used Search engine on Completed forms
Learn my Way course on Learn my Way
course
Keeping safe Not to open emails from Check for lock symbol Not set privacy
online unknown source and and https// settings.
delete them.
H McQ Activity Sent and received emails Not started on Learn my Not completed
Way course yet but will forms yet except
do next time. for opening
email account
Keeping safe Not to open emails from
online unknown source and
delete them.
Learned how to Not set privacy
open, write on settings.
and save a Word
document
We are tackling this need for better tracking of progress in future by helping volunteers to
share the standard with new learners as part of their initial session and to encourage them
to self-assess, at the beginning and towards the end of the learning relationship.
Sharing the details of learner feedback - we want to know learners' views on this project
NCDN volunteers have been playing a part in collecting feedback from their own clients
through a pro forma we have developed, and some of our work is also subject to external
evaluation through the ‘Money Go Round’ project, where the evaluator interviews some
clients independently. Because our project is based mainly on one to one sustained support,
some learners have praised the volunteer supporter very highly, and have demonstrated
how confidence in online skills can lead to other improvements in confidence and social
connections.
"I have not only learnt much, but have developed my confidence away from my laptop - I
even managed to fix the central heating and I would not have even tried before. My
volunteer has been so kind, patient and clever that I look forward to his visits. He is so
helpful and knowledgeable and as an added plus, he and his wife have become good
friends."
There have been equally positive comments about each of our volunteers from both
individuals and groups, and also from the younger age group.
10Staff/volunteer feedback - we want to know their views on this project
At NCDN team meetings volunteers have responded very positively to this opportunity to
contribute to understanding of what rural delivery on online support is like. They have, like
their clients, sometimes felt a bit nonplussed about the role of external agencies in what we
do, and they probably rightly sometimes feel that they are in a good position to define
success criteria for themselves and their clients. But equally most can increasingly see the
value of tracking progress against agreed goals.
At the outset of the project we agreed to set up a volunteer community blog iv, to which
Tinder Foundation’s project lead for this project has been given access. This is beginning to
become a very useful tool for us, both to record mini case studies and to reflect on what we
are doing, but also to share ideas for improving our practice. We intend to invite all of our
volunteer team to use the blog on a regular basis, to highlight achievements and challenges
and to keep in touch. We also host a social media forum on Linked In, which potentially
feeds into a wider partner-based network. As with all online networking tools, they need to
some extent to be serviced in order to be useful, but these, along with active Twitter feeds,
are helping our geographically dispersed team to build connections and learn from each
other.
As the blog entries demonstrate, there has been a wide range of ways of supporting people,
depending on their needs, interests, location and resources. We are also continuing to build
our range of partners, for instance, while the research project was taking place we recruited
a new digital volunteer in Alnwick, who works within and has the full backing of his local
WiFi-enables Argos store, and is keen to get better networked with other volunteers. We
have also recruited a local councillor, and have built relationships with two post offices
which have recently opened their online support projects. Our work has been featured in
the Hexham Courant, and we are enjoying the opportunity to continue to make a difference
in rural Northumberland.
I have enjoyed our sessions very much and hope to continue with the Digital Volunteer
work. I think it is really important for older people to be connected in this way. Living
even in a village can be quite isolating especially in bad weather and being able to
exchange messages with friends and relatives online confidently is a great boost to well-
being and an extra source of companionship.
J Lyford April 2014, NCDN
i
http://www.northumberland.gov.uk/Default.aspx?page=15723
ii
http://www.inorthumberland.org.uk/
iii
http://www.ncdn.org/wp-content/uploads/2014/04/NCDN-Final-draft-CCB-Engagement-case-study.pdf
iv
http://www.ncdn.org/digitalinclusion/digital-volunteers/digital-volunteer-blog/
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