So far this year more than 500 IT professionals have
registered with IT4Communities to volunteer their IT expertise and
to help their local communities and charities.
That takes the total number of IT professionals registered with
the industry's volunteer matching service to more than 4,500 since
IT4Communities was set up with Computer Weekly's
support in 2002.
Speaking during last week's National Volunteering Week,
IT4Communities programme director John Davies said, "This is
another major milestone for us. We celebrated £2m of value, in
terms of volunteers' time, at our fourth anniversary just before
Christmas last year, and we now celebrate another big increase
during the first half of this year."
IT4Communities acts as a clearing house and a source of advice
both to IT professional volunteers and also to charities wanting to
take on their services.
Set up by City of London livery company The Information
Technologists Company, IT4Communities has brought much needed
structure to the process of volunteering, and several hundred
projects have been completed successfully.
In 2005, IT4Communities joined up with four other charities -
the National Council for Voluntary Organisations, the National
Association for Voluntary and Community Action, AbilityNet, and the
London Advice Services Alliance - to form the ICT Hub to support
the effective use of IT across the voluntary sector.
The ICT Hub received £400,000 funding from the Home Office to
support its activities.
www.it4communities.org.uk
Volunteer your IT skills to help a charitable
project
Have you ever thought of volunteering your IT expertise and
experience to help your local community or a charity?
Hundreds of charities across the UK have registered with
IT4Communities looking for help with their IT systems.
The organisation, which is particularly active in helping
smaller, local projects, can match your skills to a suitable scheme
in your area. Even if you only have a few hours to spare,
IT4Communities can enable your efforts to be used to maximum
effect.
It also provides advice and support to volunteers and charities
to ensure that the relationship is enjoyable and rewarding for
everyone involved.
www.it4communities.org.uk
>>
What is the Information Technologists
Company?
Part of a centuries-old City of London tradition, the
Information Technologists Company is a body of 650 senior IT
professionals dedicated to generating effective IT-related
activities in education and charity, such as IT4Communities. It
also facilitates high-level interaction across industry and the
City.
The organisation became a City livery company 15 years ago, as
the Worshipful Company of Information Technologists. Last year the
name Information Technologists Company was adopted for general
external usage, with the original name now reserved for certain
formal internal occasions.
www.wcit.org.uk
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>>
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IT4C awards to recognise success of IT volunteers >>
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