News and views

Caspar Kennerdale (pictured on the left with learner, Jay Madawala) joined Digital Unite’s Digital Champions Network for free as part of the Lottery funded One Digital programme.

A new accredited online course and dozens of new resources have been launched by Digital Unite to train staff as Workplace Digital Champions and improve digital skills across an organisation.

Home Group, one of the biggest housing associations in the UK, has joined Digital Unite’s Digital Champions Network as part of the national Lottery funded One Digital programme.

John Thompson was named Best Volunteer Digital Champion in our recent Achievement Awards 2019 and is a Digital Champion with Phoenix Community Housing.

Digital Unite is teaming up with the UK’s leading learning disability charity, Mencap, on a new initiative that explores how becoming a Digital Champion can open up wider employment opportunities for people with a learning disability.

Because we find the best conversations about digital skills are had in small informal groups we’re running two of our popular roundtables in September. Each one is delivered in partnership with a subject matter expert and is aimed at housing providers, local authorities and charities. Choose from being a digital first organisation or building digital skills in the workplace, or both!

Naturally spaces are limited so register today.

Jane Eyre was named Workplace Digital Champion of the Year in our recent Digital Champion Achievement Awards 2019.

We wrote this back in 2019 - you can find an upate of how Southampton are doing in 2024 here.

Digital Unite has released new CPD accredited online training to help organisations and their teams deliver successful Digital Champion programmes and build capability for digital transformation.

Available as part of Digital Unite’s Digital Champions Network (DCN) the bite-sized courses, entitled SHAPE, provides invaluable advice and support on how to run a Digital Champion project/programme, boosting both the success of the project and the confidence and knowledge of the person responsible for delivering it.

As part of national Volunteers’ Week, a group of inspiring Digital Champions have been commended at an Awards ceremony in London (Tuesday 4^th June) for giving their time and commitment to helping people get online.

To celebrate Learning at Work Week (13-19 May) and its theme of ‘shaping the future’ our new infographic highlights how Digital Champions can support and cascade learning in the workplace to realise service transformation of the future.

In spring 2015, we came together with Age UK, Clarion Futures, Citizens Online and Scottish Council of Voluntary Organisations (SCVO), to consider how together, we could deliver better and sustainable digital skills to more people.

Delivering Digital Champion success

Running a Digital Champion project can be an incredibly rewarding experience for everyone involved but as a project manager or co-ordinator, getting things started can feel a little daunting at first.

West Lothian Council joined Digital Unite’s Digital Champions Network as part of the Lottery-funded One Digital programme.

The great thing about Digital Champions is that they often have a fantastic wealth of knowledge and experience that they can share with others within their communities.

Bruno Brunskill joined Digital Unite's Digital Champions Network a few months ago as part of the Lottery funded One Digital Programme. He has been teaching people how to use their computers for about seven years around the villages of Aston Tirrold and Aston Upthorpe (aka 'The Astons’) in South Oxfordshire,.

Digital Unite was named a winner at the prestigious 2019 Learning Awards, successfully receiving the Bronze Award in the hotly contested Innovation in Learning category. 

In this piece for Digital Leaders, our Chief Executive, Emma Weston OBE, talks about how learning is the real enabler for digital transformation. 

‘Want digital transformation? Encourage continuous learning for all employees.’

By Caroline Jones, Digital Unite Forum Moderator

With over 1,000 views every month, the Digital Champions Network Forum has become a valuable resource for our Champions across the UK.

CHP is a charitable housing association based in Chelmsford in Essex.

They were keen to support their customers, to be confident with using online services. In spring 2018 they joined Digital Unite’s Digital Champions Network as part of the Lottery funded One Digital programme.

Digital skills provider, Digital Unite, has been successfully awarded a new three-year contract by Clarion Futures, the charitable foundation of Clarion Housing Group. The contract extension means that Digital Unite will continue to provide the Digital Champion service to Clarion Housing residents.

There is such a wide range of people who volunteer their time as Digital Champions, but something they almost always have in common is their enthusiasm for helping others. The biggest reasons people sign up to become Digital Champions is 'getting satisfaction from helping others'.

Roger Custance is a Digital Champion with Age UK Bromsgrove, Redditch and Wyre Forest. He has access to the support and training on Digital Unite’s Digital Champions Network through Go On Worcestershire.

Southampton City Libraries has joined Digital Unite’s Digital Champions Network to extend the digital skills support they provide local people.