New website to help Get Shropshire Online launches
The Community Council of Shropshire has today launched their 'Get Shropshire Online' website with a little help from shropshirelive.com.
Data from the Office of National Statistics in June 2011 reports that nationally 8.7 million adults have never used the internet that is 17.5% of the population. Significantly, those already at a social or financial disadvantage are more likely to be off-line and missing out on the benefits digital technologies can provide.
Levelling the digital playing field in Shropshire is the aim of this 12 month project funded by UK Online Centres. Besides getting more people using the internet, the project also aims to encourage and support local communities to get a digital voice in the form of a web presence and electronic information sharing.
The new website is hosted by Shropshire news and information website shropshirelive.com at no cost to the project.
Chris Pritchard, editor and business partner of shropshirelive.com said:
“Digital exclusion is a growing problem, for example those who are not online can’t get access to online only deals like cheaper electricity, gas and insurance products.
“Having used the internet daily since 1995 its now part of everyday life for me so I find it hard to imagine not having access to such a wealth of information and useful tools.
“I’m really pleased shropshirelive.com is part of this exiting project and our team look forward to helping get Shropshire online.”
There are several Digital Inclusion activities already going on in Shropshire and the Get Shropshire Online project aims to join them up, encourage collaboration between schemes, harness voluntary effort and to encourage and support further initiatives.
Renee Wallace, Get Shropshire Online project co-ordinator said:
“The site www.getshropshireonline.co.uk is obviously aimed at those already online. Those with an interest in Digital Inclusion but specifically friends, family or colleagues of those not yet online can find a lot of useful information on the site.
“The project has been going since 1st April this year and we now have so much information and resources that it was time to put a simple website together. We have used a wordpress site, partly because it’s a great advert for the Community Voice aspect of the project. If we want to encourage communities throughout Shropshire and Telford & Wrekin to set up community websites, we needed to prove how simple it really is.”
The project uses social media channels as an integral part of communication about the project and to reach possible volunteers; including a Facebook page where people can keep up to date on progress, events and initiatives and can share their views and experiences. The project has a Twitter account that has well over 450 followers already and is this is growing on a daily basis and the new website contains a blog about the project.
Anyone who wants to find out about any aspect of getting online in Shropshire can also call Renee at the Community Council of Shropshire on 01743 3421869.
