People Know How provided devices to a residential care unit empowering young people to take the next steps in their lives through the power of digital.
Yvonne works as a Residential Care Officer supporting young people between the ages of 14-16 by providing a nurturing environment for their development. She and the young people she supports have experienced degrees of digital exclusion over the years. Organising football training, meeting up with friends and accessing studies have all become more digital. Without access to devices, young people in care struggle to have the same social and academic opportunities as their peers. For residential care units, device donations are crucial to ensuring all young people have access to the digital world.
Prior to her current role, Yvonne worked in a social work practice team supporting young people. The care system relies on charities to help provide devices enabling young people to have a social life in a world where all communication is digital. Device donations help but are in short supply due to the lack of organisations in the space and the lack of encouragement to recycle old devices. Even when devices are provided there is often limited access as they are shared between multiple young people.
Our Reconnect service aims to increase digital inclusion for adults and families, providing digital devices, skills and connectivity to improve wellbeing. Ensuring young people have access to a device is a major step to digital privacy and safety. That is why our ability to provide devices thanks to partnerships and funding is so important to young people in the care system. One of our devices has helped one young person pursue their college aspirations, allowing them to learn about and apply to a variety of courses from the comfort of their home.
A lack of devices
As young people grow older within the care system new digital challenges are presented. Without a device their privacy is removed and checking bank balances, progressing relationships and exploring their interests must now be done in a public space like a library, which applies more unneeded pressure.
Part of Yvonne’s role is to provide a safe and nurturing environment in which young people are set for success. Device donations help her get one step closer as she can provide the tools that are assumed most young people possess when taking the next steps in their lives like applying for jobs or higher education. Devices ensure that when young people leave the care system, they are well equipped to access any external resources they may need for further support.
When receiving a new device or accessing the internet many questions can arise. People of all ages need support and often the answers to their questions can be hard to find. Our operation of a free Digital Support Helpline is part of our ongoing mission to increase digital inclusion for adults and families in Scotland, providing digital devices, skills and connectivity to improve wellbeing. The helpline is free to call and can help with using devices like smartphones, tablets, laptops or desktop computers, connecting to the internet, navigating the web and social media.
Call the helpline on 0800 0590 690, open Monday to Friday between 10am and 4pm.