New government campaign aims to get more people using the
internet.
E-envoy Andrew Pinder has called on firms to encourage their IT
staff help people get to grips with the web as part of a new
government initiative to boost internet use. The Get Started
campaign, which was launched this week, aims to get more single
parents, long-term unemployed, ethnic minorities and disabled
people online.
While the internet is part of everyday life for many people in the
UK, work is urgently needed to reach those sections of the
population that have been unable to experience the benefits of
using the internet.
It would seem that the UK is becoming a society of information
haves and have-nots. Figures from the Office for National
Statistics, for example, showed that significant sections of the
adult population, particularly groups such as the disabled and the
long-term unemployed, are still not online. The ONS revealed that,
while 52% of the adult population can be counted as regular
internet users, there has been little growth in internet access
among the lowest income bracket, with just 10% online compared to
82% of high earners.
The research has implications for the success of a variety of
online projects from the public sector, retailers and charities.
For example, earlier this year, the National Audit Office told the
government it needed to boost the number of older people using
e-government services for them to be commercially viable.
The high-profile Get Started campaign aims to tackle some of the
main barriers to getting online, such as a lack of skills and no
access to hardware. As part of the campaign, which will run until
30 June, members of the public will be eligible for a free internet
introductory session at one of 6,000 participating UK Online
centres.
Pinder said, "What we are trying to do here is to reach out to
people in particular situations and encourage them to use this
technology and all the free facilities that we have
provided."
The government will also be working hard to highlight the benefits
of getting online, and has even recruited the services of
Coronation Street star Samia Ghadie to help publicise the
initiative. Better known to soap viewers as Maria Sutherland,
Ghadie was scheduled to visit each of the Granada-owned ITV regions
in a helicopter this week handing out free computers.
Partners including the BBC, Hewlett-Packard and Age Concern will
also be working to support the project. Age Concern, for example,
has launched its own Silver Surfer Festival as part of Get Started.
Run in partnership with Microsoft, Cable & Wireless and UK
Online, the festival is a month-long campaign to promote the
benefits of the internet to older people and provide free internet
access and training.
An Age Concern spokeswoman said, "From our point of view, Get
Started is important because it is key for older people to be
involved in the internet revolution. They stand to gain the most
from being included and, to date, they haven't been targeted by the
online industry."
Pinder believes the campaign could be the start of a number of
similar initiatives such as joint working with trade unions to
address the UK's IT skills gaps.
Pinder urged IT professionals to join the Get Started initiative by
helping someone get online. "I would like to see more firms that
use technology encouraging their IT-enabled employees to go out
there, have a day off, and help the have-nots," he said.
How to help someone get online:
The campaign's objectives
- To invite people to experience the benefits of going online
through free introductory internet sessions at UK Online
centres
- To highlight the benefits of using the internet
- To break down the barriers that prevent people getting
online.