Opening Doors to An Active Life for People Over 50

New Government Champion for digital inclusion

Open Age plays host to the new Government Champion for digital inclusion

Open Age played host to a host of digital dignitaries, at a special event in June.

Their Thorpe Close UK Online centre was set to be the venue for the official launch of the nation’s new Digital Inclusion Champion – the person who will help the government inspire people to get to grips with computers and the internet and see how technology could help them improve or enhance their lives. The launch however had to be changed to a “visit” due to the government reshuffle and no Minister with responsibilities for digital inclusion on the date!

The position of Champion has been taken on by Martha Lane Fox, best known as the dotcom millionaire behind lastminute.com, and founder of charity Antigone. Martha was met by national Managing Director of UK online centres Helen Milner, alongside Open Age Head of Community Learning Swati Shah and Open Age Director Helen Leech. The Champ chatted with some of the centre’s learners about their experiences with technology, and what she hoped to be able to achieve with them and for them in her role of Champion.

Other visitors included key staff from the Cross Government Digital Inclusion team.

There are an estimated 17 million adults in the UK who are digitally excluded – not using computers or the internet – and therefore missing out on all the opportunities, benefits, conveniences and even savings they can provide. Around half of all those off-line are over 65, which made Open Age the perfect place for Martha to make a start in her new role. Open Age provides over 160 weekly learning/leisure activities in community venues to around 1000 people a week. They particularly specialise in helping older people use computers and every week hold over 20 tutored computer learning sessions as well as a number of drop in support sessions across The Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea and Westminster.

Open Age Centre head of Community Learning Swati Shah said: “It was great to host the event, and welcome Martha Lane Fox as our new Digital Inclusion Champion. Digital technologies really can help make everyday tasks quicker and easier, open up whole new worlds of information and opportunity, and genuinely improve quality of life. Just ask any of our learners – which is what Martha did today. Whether you want to research a hobby, get in touch with a far-flung relative or friend, manage your photographs, money or do your shopping online, help your grandkids with homework or just understand what they’re talking about, we can help. It doesn’t matter if you’ve never even touched a computer before – it’s never too late to give it a go!”

Open Age is one of thousands of UK online centres across England, and Managing Director of the network Helen Milner is one of ten members of an expert Taskforce - representing industry, the third sector, broadcasting and grass roots delivery – which will be helping Martha raise awareness of digital inclusion and drive digital take-up. She said: “I’m delighted Martha was able to come to a UK online centre to start her Champion role, and see digital inclusion in action. It’s a new time for digital inclusion and I believe it’s time to work together, to find out what’s already working and scale it up, and to support local action and innovation. I’m looking forward to working with Martha and the rest of the Taskforce team to make sure we see that starting to happen over the coming weeks and months.”

Martha Lane Fox presented at a Reboot Britain conference in July and included in her speech mention of Open Age and some of the individuals she had talked to there. She said that the stories she had heard at Open Age were “mind boggling” and “deeply inspirational”

For more information on Open Age please call 02089641900