Inspiration, Leadership and Achievement in a Digital World.

TV personality and education advocate Maggie Philbin will host the Communities 2.0 Celebration of Achievement Awards at the Swalec Stadium on Thursday 26^th February. The awards recognise community groups, tutors and volunteers who have made an impact in helping over 50,000 people to try their hand at laptops, tablets and using the internet through the Welsh Government’s Communities 2.0 programme and its partner projects.

The Awards are part of the Communities 2.0 Conference and they will be attended by the Minister for Communities and Tackling Poverty, Lesley Griffiths AM, who will present the prizes to the winners. Communities 2.0 is a Welsh Government digital inclusion programme tasked with supporting communities to make the most of digital technology and the internet. It has been part funded by European Regional Development Funding.

In the awards, individuals, organisations and partnerships that have excelled in the journey to creating a more digital Wales will be recognised in six award categories which reflect the quality and best practice developed throughout the course of the programme.

The awards kick off by recognising the individual achievement of people who have used Communities 2.0 support to become confident online and whose life has been transformed by being able to take advantage of the internet and digital technology.

The shortlisted nominees are:

Individual Achievement Award

• Alison Bromley from Flintshire
• Norman Potter from Rhondda Cynon Taf
• Sian Davies from Aberdare

Inspirational Volunteer Award

• John Jasper who volunteered with Get Caerphilly Online in Caerphilly Library
• Kelly Morris who also volunteered with the Get Caerphilly Online Digital Friday’s team at Risca Library
• Ian Harland who is a Communities 2.0 Digital Champion volunteering in Milford Haven.

Inspirational Tutor Award

• Scott Tandy, Newydd
• Craig Clark, Caerphilly Country Borough Council
• Paul Collins, Melin Homes

Community and Voluntary Group Award

• PATCH (Pembrokeshire Action to Combat Hardship)
• Bargoed Deaf Club
• The Modern Print Target Club based in Pembroke Dock

Communities 2.0 Enterprise Award

• Monwel Limited, Ebbw Vale
• The Digital Accessibility Centre (DAC) Llandarcy, Neath Port Talbot
• Pembrokeshire Machinery Ring (PMR LTD), Haverfordwest

Digital Leadership Award

• The Melincryddan Community Conference (MCC)
• Care and Repair Cymru
• Get Caerphilly Online

The Communities 2.0 Celebration of Achievement Awards are the culmination of a unique conference which celebrates the impact of the Welsh Government’s Communities 2.0 digital inclusion programme. The Communities 2.0 Conference runs from Wednesday 25th to Thursday 26th February at the Swalec Stadium in Cardiff.

The Conference will feature key note speeches from the Minister for Communities and Tackling Poverty, Lesley Griffiths AM and well known digital inclusion activist Dr Sue Black.

Digital inclusion has come a long way in Wales since the launch of the Welsh Government’s Communities 2.0 programme in 2009. Organisations such as local authorities, housing associations, community and voluntary groups and social enterprises have embedded digital technology within their day to day activities. The use of technology such as tablet devices and smart phones has revolutionised the way people get online to access information and services. Universal Jobmatch has made it essential for job seekers to have digital skills.

In its lifetime the programme has supported hundreds of small enterprises and voluntary organisations, and thousands of individuals, to get online and benefit from digital technology. The project ends in Spring 2015 and this conference is an opportunity to find out what worked, discover the latest technology being used to tackle digital exclusion and discuss what the future looks like for digital inclusion in Wales when the project comes to an end.

There are still some free places remaining for both the conference and the awards. They can be booked by visiting www.communities2point0.org.uk/conference-2015 or by calling 0845 474 8282.

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About the Awards and nominees

Shortlisted nominees for the Individual Achievement Award include:

• Alison Bromley from Flintshire who has not only gained extensive experience using the internet and has shared her experience by allowing videos of her experience to be shared widely across north Wales.

• Norman Potter lives in a sheltered housing complex in Rhondda Cynon Taf. Norman started attending sessions in 2011 and since then has gained a massive understanding of technology and has now become the ‘go-to’ person for technical and IT related issues at the complex. His work has contributed to the daily lives of the other residents there.

• Sian Davies is a single parent from Penywaun in Aberdare who had no digital skills before joining the Dapper FM local radio project. Through her experience with the project and increasing digital skills, Sian became a ‘local hero’ and inspired many other local people to get involved.

The Inspirational Tutor Award category recognises individuals who have worked in a professional capacity to help people to access the internet and go the extra mile to ensure that those they support are confident and safe online.

• Scott Tandy started with Newydd as a Scheme Co-ordinator for a sheltered housing scheme in Penarth and has progressed rapidly to a Community Partnership officer where he now leads on digital inclusion and youth engagement. He ‘lives and breathes’ the organisation’s values and is now responsible for operational delivery of Newydd’s digital inclusion programme across Newtown, Rhondda Cynon Taf, the Vale of Glamorgan and Neath Port Talbot.

• Craig Clark has been employed by Caerphilly Country Borough Council as a Digital Inclusion Officer on Get Caerphilly Online since 2012. An inspirational tutor, he has been running basic IT courses across the borough. Craig has been instrumental in helping over 4000 people get online for the first time and he helped launch the ‘Digital Fridays’ library drop-in sessions which have been replicated in many other projects across Wales.

• Paul Collins is a much admired tutor for Melin Homes. He has a reputation for turning up early and leaving late for the sessions he delivers. He often leaves the sessions late as people bring their problems to him, which he solves without a complaint and in his own time. He is well known for his creative approach to teaching digital inclusion and has an excellent rapport with his learners.

Over the six years that Communities 2.0 has been delivering digital inclusion work with Welsh communities, over 500 volunteers have come forward to help the core team. Their support has been invaluable and the Inspirational Volunteer Awardrecognises the very best amongst a community of people who have selflessly given their time to help others experience the benefits of using ICT.

• John Jasper supports Get Caerphilly Online’s Digital Friday sessions at Caerphilly Library. John’s ability to demystify Universal Jobmatch and Windows 8 has proven invaluable at these sessions and he now contributes to further open access sessions and supports First Click courses in the area. His gentle and patient manner is perfect for digital inclusion work.

• Kelly Morris has developed hugely since joining the Digital Friday’s team at Risca Library in December 2012. Her confidence has flourished and she now leads First Click sessions. Kelly has committed nearly over 850 volunteer hours to the Get Caerphilly Online project in the last two years. With no access to a car Kelly travels by bus to sessions across the Caerphilly Borough.
• Ian Harland has been a Communities 2.0 Digital Champion since August 2013 and is volunteering whist looking for a job. He delivers BBC First Click and I.T. Health Checks for the unemployed in his home town of Milford Haven. He mainly supports Job Centre Plus clients to get them online. New clients come in and ask for him specifically because they have been told by friends and family about his excellent teaching skills and knowledge of the topic.

The Communities 2.0 Community and Voluntary Group Award intends to recognise a community or voluntary organisation that can best demonstrate how support with digital technology has taken the organisation forward.

• PATCH (Pembrokeshire Action to Combat Hardship) is a charitable organisation aiming to relieve the effects of poverty for individuals and families within Pembrokeshire. It gives food parcels, clothing, and other items to people in financial difficulty as well as providing toys to children at Christmas to help their parents avoid getting into debt. They used knowledge gained from the Communities 2.0 ICT Review to modernise their marketing and communications to maximise essential donations and to develop and launch a pioneering Digital Inclusion element to their frontline work.

• Bargoed Deaf Club is a social organisation. The club has around 30 members and is one of two deaf social clubs operating in the Caerphilly area. Communities 2.0 Outreach Officer Angharad Dalton delivered sessions to the group, working in tandem with a British Sign Language translator. The session taught members of the group how to communicate in sign language over the internet via Skype. Subsequent sessions explored basic IT, photography, mobile devices and tablets. Members now use their new skills to keep in touch with each other in-between meetings.

• The Modern Print Target Club is a Pembroke Dock based shooting club for people with disabilities. They came to Communities 2.0 for help with creating their own website with the aim to help them take a step closer to becoming a nationally recognised Centre of Excellence for Disabled Shooting. The club has fully engaged with the Communities 2.0 ICT review process and as a result completely changed the way it operates to become a more modern and efficient community organisation with national ambitions.

Communities 2.0 has supported new micro-enterprises that have ICT at their core as well as new and established social enterprises. The Communities 2.0 Enterprise Award was aimed at those businesses who have utilised a Communities 2.0 ICT review to improve their sustainability, job security and operational efficiency.

• Monwel Limited, a social enterprise based in Ebbw Vale is a manufacturer of road traffic signs and bespoke signage.In September 2013 Monwel became an independent social enterprise.Monwel employs 32 full-time people from the local community, 96% of whom manage some form of disability. Monwel has used its ICT review to help it upgrade the financial systems, market the company more effectively online and enhance its design software. All of these measures were implemented with the aim of improving sustainability and efficiency in a competitive marketplace.

• The Digital Accessibility Centre (DAC) based in Llandarcy, is a Social Enterprise established in 2011, and is now one of the UK’s leading providers of “real life” web accessibility testing services in the UK.Communities 2.0 supported DAC to developthe ICT functionality of the organisation.This business investment has helped accelerate the growth of the company which employs 19 staff, 14 of whom have disabilities.DAC tests websites, apps and electronic media for companies such as Channel 4, Money Advice Service, BT, Nationwide and many local and central government agencies. All profits generated are re-invested back into the business with the aim of providing more high quality employment opportunities for people with disabilities.

• Pembrokeshire Machinery Ring (PMR LTD) is a well established, member owned co-operative and based in Haverfordwest. The business provides services that allow local rural businesses to use their resources in a more efficient way, acting as a broker linking supply to demand. Following a Communities 2.0 ICT review and support the organisation implemented a whole package of support in just 20 days. A new Customer Relationship Management system enables detailed tracking of client interaction and a more refined seasonal marketing approach.Software upgrades have significantly improved business efficiencies enabling remote staff to enter and access ‘real time’ data and eliminate previous double entry processes.

The Digital Leadership Award recognises organisations and partnerships that have used Communities 2.0 support to bring about cultural change to themselves and to the communities they work with through the use of digital technology.

• The Melincryddan Community Conference (MCC) is a grassroots organisation formed by community members to help regenerate the local area and to work with the Communities First programme. Support with digital technology has taken the MCC forward and enabled it to grow into a recognised digital leader within Neath Port Talbot. It has developed its delivery staff, employed an apprentice and developed a large and active volunteer base. The MCC has exceeded each of its outcome targets and made a direct impact to life in its community.
• Care and Repair Cymru has been shortlisted for the innovative Care and Repair MyPad project which focussed on a difficult to access priority group, older home owners and renters. Older and disabled people were introduced to technology within the comforts of their own home, eradicating one of the ‘barriers’ to digital engagement. Care and Repair case workers were issued with iPads to complete their client assessments from start to finish in the client’s homes. Clients saw first hand the capabilities of the iPad for accessing the web and taking photographs of documents. Clients showing an interest in further development were referred to Communities 2.0 and other local initiatives for further training.
• The Get Caerphilly Online Campaign was launched in May 2012 and brought together 3 different Digital Inclusion Projects operating across Caerphilly Borough under one banner. The campaign has developed a number of innovative initiatives such as Digital Fridays library drop in sessions which have been replicated in many other areas since. It has recently supported the development of Cloud9, a financial and digital inclusion project aimed at ensuring that every child in the area has access to a laptop or tablet, which can be purchased through the local Credit Union.