Formed in 2013 we became a registered charity on the 10th of November 2021 charity number 11956503 Our organisation was created out of concerns raised by residents about feeling as though they had been forgotten because they were not digitally included with many fearing they were at risk of losing their independence because of the increasing numbers of socially essential services gravitating to online presence only. Our mission is to raise awareness and reach out to those in North Tyneside who are not on the radar of many socially essential services because they are digitally excluded. This applies to all who consider themselves vulnerable, regardless of age or ability, and who must confront the challenges of adapting to a digital world or suffer the consequences of becoming digitally and potentially, financially and socially excluded. Our organisation is built using social capital, incorporating community engagement practices, where ownership is shared, where governance is not exclusive but inclusive and where diversity is embraced, which is why we adopt traditional community engagement because human contact is necessary for many to feel they are on a shared journey of learning that leads to community participation. While humanizing the online world we encourage individuals to bridge and get involved in number of topic-based groups where people can share interests and trade information digitally and importantly in real space and time to increase their social circles of support. We also encourage development of personal goals to help with confidence, self-esteem and, critically tackle loneliness and isolation. We are therefore more than just a digital training service because social goals are vital to engaging with those on the digital periphery, and explains why we align digital exclusion with social exclusion. This becomes an integral part in the enabling process where skills learnt empower and create a community stake so that beneficiaries can peer-support others, including adopting a hybrid approach to delivering our learning support: face-to-face combined with non-digital channels such as printed material and telephone calls, so that all volunteers can maximise their participation.
