Rural Digital Inclusion project

Overview

The Rural Digital Inclusion project is a partnership between iNorthumberland, Community Action Northumberland (CAN) and NICRE. The project is supported by partners including Commsworld, and works alongside the installation of full fibre broadband across Northumberland. It will help rural communities and businesses to get full value from the improvements to digital infrastructure by:

Providing practical support to help people use technology in their daily lives
Working with partners across Northumberland and beyond so that new initiatives complement and build on what is already available to support digital inclusion.
Capturing feedback and learning throughout to develop a blueprint for rural digital inclusion for other communities and local and regional policy-makers

Get involved - become a digital champion

Over the next three years the project will recruit and train volunteer digital champions and connect them with village halls and other community spaces to develop a local offer of support. This could include running a regular drop-in service, organising 'techy-tea parties' or training sessions, popping up at existing meetings and events, and helping local groups and businesses make more use of digital technology in their work.

Find out more and register your interest

Other ways to support

CAN and NICRE are also keen to hear from organisations which can support the project – whether by hosting a digital champion, encouraging staff to volunteer, donating devices, helping raise awareness, or sharing case studies of how they support digital inclusion.

Throughout the project we'll be capturing and sharing learning about ways to boost digital access, skills and confidence in rural communities, and showcasing case studies on our Innovation Portal. We would love to hear stories and examples from any part of the UK and beyond.

Get in touch