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Give Digital A Go

Digital Inclusion is important!

When DIY couldn’t get together face-to-face because of the covid pandemic of 2020-21 we had to find other ways to keep creating and connecting.

People everywhere were staying safe at home and using digital technology to work, to shop, to get together with friends…

We at DIY needed to be using digital technology too, but many members had never used a computer and none had used Zoom before. We had to find ways to support and encourage our members – both adults and young people with learning disabilities – to be able to use digital technologies to get together.

Getting to see where everyone’s at and to see how well everyone’s doing in this crazy, crazy time, and it’s about us sticking together.”
Youth Drama Club member

At first I didn’t like Zoom because all I could see was a small little box but every time I’ve come on Zoom I’ve got more confident and got used to seeing people in little boxes.”
DIY Young Leader

The experiences of DIY members during the Pandemic reflected experiences of people with learning disabilities across the globe. Before the pandemic it was widely accepted that many people with learning disabilities were experiencing digital exclusion. Many factors contributed to this including very limited access to equipment, lack of confidence and lack of support in using technology. Once the pandemic hit people with lived experience of learning disability became even more disadvantaged and isolated.

This is why DIY made our “Enjoy Your Time Online Film” and the series of short film resources called “It makes a big Difference” (shown on this page) – to support people with learning disabilities and also their families and supporters to give digital a go!

Give Digital A Go!

Here are some resources to help you

• Watch our film – It makes a big difference – Give Digital a Go

• Read this – guide to getting started on Zoom

  Zoom is a free online platform. Click here to see the ‘How-to-use-Zoom’ Easy Read guide, (thanks to Learning Disability Wales for the use of this resource).

• Watch our ‘Enjoy Your Time Online’ to see how we got digital at DIY.

  
  DIY’s Enjoy Your Time Online film shows how DIY leaders created ‘Digital Monsters’ to represent their feelings of frustration and nerves when they first started going online. It also captures the enjoyment and sense of achievement members experienced once they were able to access the digital world – an enjoyment and sense of achievement that DIY leaders are keen to pass on to others through making this film.

• Learn how to film with your phone in our Top Tips guide

  This short video was created by DIY Member Amy and film-maker Hilary Easter-Jones. It provides Top Tips for how to film using a mobile phone.

  This video was created as part of Amy’s Challenges for her Gold Arts Award. See more about DIY and Arts Award.

Our Digital Inclusion project has grown from the darkness of COVID19 but captured the beauty of connection & friendship.

DIY’s Digital Inclusion work has been made possible by

• Greater Manchester Combined Authority: Provider Capital Grants Programme which funded computer equipment for our members.

• The National Lottery Community Fund

• NHS Salford CCG and Salford CVS via their CV-19 Disability Response Fund
• Arts Council England