Helping communities to get online

Accessing and learning about the digital world can be a challenge for many communities and individuals in disadvantaged areas across the UK.

Get IT Together is a digital inclusion project from Citizens Online and supported by Nominet Trust, targeting the 24 most disadvantaged and least connected communities in the UK.  Through a programme of activities, Get IT Together will help individual learn new skills and gain confidence in using computers and accessing the Internet. By working at a local level, the project aims to help communities overcome any barriers they have to IT and the Internet so they can take advantage of the wealth of opportunities digital technology and the Internet have to offer.

Getting back in touch

When Valerie arrived at her local library for her first IT lesson she was trembling like a frightened rabbit!

But project staff came to her rescue and Valerie quickly found herself online and looking at rail ticket prices. After just a short time she soon gained confidence, learnt new skills and met new people.

As Valerie says:

“Using the computer has opened up new horizons for me and I can’t imagine life without it now.  I’m not frightened of the computer any more.”

Now she is using email to communicate with friends and family and she has even reconnected with friends she'd lost touch with.  After 15 years she is emailing and chatting with friends she never expected to talk to again.

About Citizens Online

Citizens Online is a national charity that believes participation in the digital world is a fundamental part of modern life.  It is their aim to ensure that the benefits of digital technologies can be enjoyed and shared by everybody, so that our society may become more inclusive and just.