After 1 year of delivering Reconnect in East Lothian, we’re reflecting on some of the key milestones and stories from that time.
Our Reconnect service supports adults and families to improve wellbeing through increasing digital and social inclusion. The pandemic had a great influence on the development of the service over the last 20 months, as it heightened isolation, loneliness and digital exclusion. To address this, in 2020 we expanded our provision in East Lothian to include Reconnect.
We’ve been combating digital exclusion for almost 7 years and are now collaborating with a number of organisations as well as East Lothian Council, Musselburgh Area Partnership and Volunteer Centre East Lothian along with other community and third sector organisation to support the county through the projects that make up the service.
From providing digital devices through Computer Delivery, to our operation of the national Connecting Scotland digital support Helpline, to developing tailored digital and wellbeing support through Wellbeing & Digital; Reconnect helps people to stay connected, improve financial health, increase employability, access resources and more. We have now also launched a national campaign to combat data poverty called Connectivity Now, which invites all organisations, community groups and individuals to pledge their support to achieve connectivity for all.
Musselburgh Scottish Seniors Computer Club
Early in the pandemic People Know How began collaborating with the Scottish Council for Voluntary Organisations (SCVO), operating the Connecting Scotland national helpline. Connecting Scotland is a Scottish Government programme that was set up in response to coronavirus, with the aim of helping every citizen in Scotland get online by providing individuals devices and connectivity.
Our volunteers provide phone support to those who have received a device through the programme, as well as those in need of digital phone support in East Lothian and Edinburgh. This can range from support to setup and use the device, to learning about the internet and how to stay safe online. This year we handled almost 5,000 calls from across the country.
One call we received this autumn was from Scottish Seniors Computer Club member, Teresa. When this club in Musselburgh lost all their volunteering support, they were keen to keep learning. One member Teresa did a search online and found the Connecting Scotland Helpline. She rang us up, looking for someone to share their knowledge of digital skills to supplement their existing peer to peer support.
The club caters to anyone over 50 who is keen to learn new digital skills on their devices. Through regular social gatherings, it helps members to learn how to keep in touch with friends and family, stay safe online, try online shopping, save money on bills, and more. Over lockdown the club had continued to run over Zoom, but was beginning to return to weekly face to face meetings as restrictions eased.
After Teresa’s call with us, People Know How agreed to join the club sessions in Musselburgh. Since then our Helpline Coordinator Kirsty and VIPs have been heading along to the weekly meet-ups where they have found a group of eager-to-learn individuals who they have been helping to improve their skills and gain confidence in doing more with their devices.
“The Musselburgh group have been incredibly welcoming and supportive. The atmosphere is very friendly and everyone is given the opportunity to receive help whether they want to learn something large or small. I’m really looking forward to working together to continue developing members digital skills!”
Collaborating across East Lothian to distribute devices
Since April 2020 our Computer Delivery project has delivered over 2,000 devices across East Lothian, Edinburgh and some further afield including West Lothian, Midlothian and Fife, with over 200 of those devices going to East Lothian. The project collects donated devices, refurbishes them and delivers them to recipients’ doorsteps, as well as also distributing devices provided through the Connecting Scotland programme. We provide phone support throughout setup as well as support for connectivity.
We have been collaborating with a variety of organisations in East Lothian. By providing devices to Musselburgh Grammar School, Home-Start East Lothian and Musselburgh charity Bridges Project, they have been able to further support their young people over the pandemic by passing on these computers, laptops or tablets. This includes Bridges Project service users who have been able to complete college work from home thanks to a donated computer, or who have used a donated laptop to gain a Duke of Edinburgh Award.
Other organisations like East Lothian Works and The Ridge have also collaborated with us, using devices from us to help improve employability by building CVs, completing applications or searching for jobs online.
"We're proud to work with so many great organisations in East Lothian that provide essential support to communities across the county, supporting their service users with devices and connectivity."
Looking to 2022
The above are just some of the stories from the last two years of supporting East Lothian communities. We can’t wait to continue this work in 2022.
If you’re an organisation or individual interested in any of our Reconnect projects in East Lothian, take a look at our service page below.