Get Connected Now Connecting 500 People Experiencing Homelessness To The Digital World
After the success of Simon Community Scotland’s Get Connected 100 project we have continued to expand our work through the launch of the Get Connected 500 project earlier this year.
In March 2022, thanks to a combination of funding from the Scottish Government, Good Things Foundation (financially supported by JP Morgan) and Simon Community Scotland we launched the Get Connected 500 project providing a further 500 people experiencing homelessness with access to the digital world.
The Get Connected Model
The Get Connected model provides people we support with digital devices, connectivity and support from a frontline worker trained in digital inclusion. The support provided is based around a learning framework of digital skills covering 5 key categories: Communication, Finding Information, Money Matters, Entertainment and Learning and Health and Wellbeing.
Innovation and Development
We are always looking at ways to enhance our model and provide new opportunities to the people we support. These include:
- Get Connected App – We’re moving our ‘Quick Wins Guide’ to a digital format. The app will be pre-installed onto devices so that people can engage in self directed learning as well as being supported by our Digital Champions.
- Sustainability Plan – We are building a sustainability plan to support participants in our scheme when their unlimited data ends, ensuring that they can continue to access digital.
- Digital Health – Our learning framework now contains a digital health category. We recognise that using digital to engage in health can have truly life saving benefits.
- Reaching out to new demographics – We are exploring how we can provide enhanced support to people with no recourse to public funds.
Partnership Approach
The project is being delivered alongside our Get Digital Partners throughout Scotland including Aberdeen Cyrenians, Frontline Fife, Transform in Dundee, Turning Point Perth, CATH in Perth and Seascape in Ayr. Working in partnership with these key homelessness service providers ensures that we have a national approach to digital inclusion within Scotland’s homelessness sector. This ensures we can share learning and best practice throughout our network as the digital landscape evolves.
Get Connected Making Progress
We have distributed approximately 342 (68%) of our 500 devices to people experiencing homelessness in Simon Community services and our partners across Scotland. We envisage that the 500 devices will have been distributed by the end of March 2023. We are now in the process of evaluating the impact from Get Connected 500 and we are excited to be able to share these stories with you very soon.
Strong Early Indicators
Our impact surveys offer some encouraging signs:
- 94% feel more confident using digital
- 85% feel less lonely
- 94% have enjoyed engaging with digital
- 91% told us the support received from the support worker was helpful
People we are supporting tell us:
- “it has been a huge help, as I spend a lot of time at home, it’s helped with the isolation”.
- “i feel as if it has helped me stay connected with family friends and the simon community project”.
- “am able to use online banking safely and video call friends family etc
- “to be able to get out and do stuff as I have my music to get out the house and not be isolated in my flat “
Look out for more news on the Get Connected 500 project as we evaluate impact and share learning.
