If you couldn’t see or hear like most of the population, you might think that smartphones, tablets and e-readers would be of little or no use to you. Fortunately, you would be wrong.
Online Today is a Big Lottery funded project run by RNIB Cymru and its partners - North Wales Society for the Blind, Vision Support and Action on Hearing Loss.
In the next couple of years, we’re aiming to work with 6,000 people across Wales with sight and hearing loss in order to show, teach and demonstrate how inbuilt functionality and specialist software can open up the world of digital technology.
Lots of people just don’t know where to start when it comes to digital technology. That’s where Online Today comes in. We have a team of eight Digital Skills Officers scattered liberally across the country who are running events, small group sessions and delivering home sessions to those that have difficulty getting about or who live in remote areas. We take along a whole load of the latest technology, and a “mi-fi” to use where there is no broadband connection, so people can get hands on with an iPad, smartphone or laptop. People are given time and support to explore and play with the equipment. They are shown how to access accessibility features, set up e-mail, use Facetime or Skype, do their shopping or banking and even set up Facebook or Twitter accounts. And it's not just a one off - Online Today encourages people to attend as many sessions as possible or we’ll go to their home for as long as is needed to build up their confidence.
Who qualifies for this project? Anyone who has sight or hearing loss. They don’t need to be registered as visually impaired, hearing impaired or blind but their senses do need to be adversely affected due to age or health condition. If you’re not sure about referring someone, then give us a ring and we’ll see what we can do to help.
You can also check http://www.rnib.org.uk/online-today-event-search for up and coming events.
We’re on 029 2082 8518 for further details, or e-mail us at Onlinetodaycymru@rnib.org.uk
Chris Hoyle
Digital Inclusion Manager, RNIB Cymru
Thursday, 5 November 2015
Monday, 2 November 2015
A view from housing: What would the draft Wales Bill mean in practice?
The draft Wales Bill, published last week, caused all the usual political rumblings. Amid all the talk of insults to Wales, Whitehall being a bad loser, and the looming threat of a constitutional crisis, there doesn’t seem to have been too much discussion about the practical implications of the proposals within the Bill.
A devolved legislature with extensive powers is now clearly the settled will of the people of Wales.
And while technical debates about constitutional mechanisms and legislation probably won’t be a topic of conversation as the people of Wales eat their tea tonight; job security, health, and housing probably will.
What will the draft Wales Bill mean to, for example, a social housing tenant in Bangor? Or a homeless woman in a hostel in Cardiff?
Housing is probably the area of devolved policy where we have seen Wales and England diverge most over the last 16 years.
Not only is devolved government the settled will of the people of Wales, but a vastly different approach to housing (amongst other things) is too.
In Wales, we have had successive governments committed to investment in social housing, through Social Housing Grant, which has allowed the housing association sector to provide an average of 2,000 additional homes each year. At the same time, Welsh Government supports a ‘Help to Buy’ product which allows better access to home ownership. Across the border, UK Government pursues home ownership as the be all and end all of housing policy, with funding for social housing sacrificed for a loosely defined ‘affordable’ home ownership offer.
Devolution has meant that the housing association sector in Wales has had an opportunity to define itself very differently from our friends across the border.
The Right to Buy for housing associations and the 1% cut to social rents will have a profound impact on affordable housing as we know it in England. In Wales, there are proposals afoot to abolish Right to Buy completely, and we hope that Welsh Government won’t follow the same path on rents – a path now roundly rejected by housing providers and tenants groups.
The draft Wales Bill threatens the ability to legislate for these policy differences – voted for by the people of Wales.
Welsh Government suggests that the Housing Act, which took action on the scourge of empty homes, created new models of co-operative housing and takes action to improve the private sector, would not have been within the competence of the Assembly. This is inexplicable.
It is not a leap to suggest that the proposals in their current form take us back to the dark days of the Legislative Competence Order (LCO). Those of us schooled in the history of LCOs, or indeed housing policy, will know that this didn’t work.
The Reserved Powers model this Bill seeks to enshrine should be about simplicity and clarity. For legislators and voters.
In its present form, the Bill adds to the confusion - not only threatening to slam the brakes on the devolution journey, but threatening to halt the significant progress Wales has made as a nation in a number of areas. For housing, devolution hasn’t just allowed us to do things differently; it has allowed us to better meet the needs, and the will, of the people of Wales.
Aaron Hill
Public Affairs Manager, Community Housing Cymru Group
A devolved legislature with extensive powers is now clearly the settled will of the people of Wales.
And while technical debates about constitutional mechanisms and legislation probably won’t be a topic of conversation as the people of Wales eat their tea tonight; job security, health, and housing probably will.
What will the draft Wales Bill mean to, for example, a social housing tenant in Bangor? Or a homeless woman in a hostel in Cardiff?
Housing is probably the area of devolved policy where we have seen Wales and England diverge most over the last 16 years.
Not only is devolved government the settled will of the people of Wales, but a vastly different approach to housing (amongst other things) is too.
In Wales, we have had successive governments committed to investment in social housing, through Social Housing Grant, which has allowed the housing association sector to provide an average of 2,000 additional homes each year. At the same time, Welsh Government supports a ‘Help to Buy’ product which allows better access to home ownership. Across the border, UK Government pursues home ownership as the be all and end all of housing policy, with funding for social housing sacrificed for a loosely defined ‘affordable’ home ownership offer.
Devolution has meant that the housing association sector in Wales has had an opportunity to define itself very differently from our friends across the border.
The Right to Buy for housing associations and the 1% cut to social rents will have a profound impact on affordable housing as we know it in England. In Wales, there are proposals afoot to abolish Right to Buy completely, and we hope that Welsh Government won’t follow the same path on rents – a path now roundly rejected by housing providers and tenants groups.
The draft Wales Bill threatens the ability to legislate for these policy differences – voted for by the people of Wales.
Welsh Government suggests that the Housing Act, which took action on the scourge of empty homes, created new models of co-operative housing and takes action to improve the private sector, would not have been within the competence of the Assembly. This is inexplicable.
It is not a leap to suggest that the proposals in their current form take us back to the dark days of the Legislative Competence Order (LCO). Those of us schooled in the history of LCOs, or indeed housing policy, will know that this didn’t work.
The Reserved Powers model this Bill seeks to enshrine should be about simplicity and clarity. For legislators and voters.
In its present form, the Bill adds to the confusion - not only threatening to slam the brakes on the devolution journey, but threatening to halt the significant progress Wales has made as a nation in a number of areas. For housing, devolution hasn’t just allowed us to do things differently; it has allowed us to better meet the needs, and the will, of the people of Wales.
Aaron Hill
Public Affairs Manager, Community Housing Cymru Group
This blog post was originally published on IWA's Click on Wales site. You can read it here.
Thursday, 29 October 2015
Gareth's story
Read about how the Supporting People Programme changed Gareth's life for the better...
I was homeless and living in a tent. I was trying to overcome drug addiction but this is difficult when you don’t have secure accommodation.
Which organisation/support provider helped you?
Solas' Dyfrig House scheme in Cardiff
How did your support provider help you? Dyfrig House is a place where I feel safe. I have been in other hostels where I feel like I have to watch my back, but not here. Support to go swimming has helped improve my self confidence. I wouldn’t have liked using the changing room with lots of other people when I was homeless, but I now feel confident, even when it’s busy. I’ve also had support to enrol on the Footsteps to Recovery programme to address my substance misuse issues and now that I have completed this I have enrolled on the MILE programme to help me fulfil my life goal of becoming a substance misuse worker.
What did you find most valuable about your support provider?
The fact that it is a dry hostel means I feel safe.
Where would you be now if it wasn’t for your support provider?
I really couldn’t say, but a lot closer to my death for sure.
What are your hopes and aspirations for the future?
To become a substance misuse worker. For now I need to stay clean, complete the MILE programme and start my volunteering.
Tuesday, 27 October 2015
Christopher's story
Christopher explains how the Supporting People Programme has changed his life...
What were the circumstances which led to you needing your support provider?
I was homeless following the breakdown of a relationship and I was abusing alcohol and drugs. I didn’t take my medication and my mental health deteriorated which resulted in me being admitted to hospital following a suicide attempt
Which organisation/support provider helped you?
Solas' Dyfrig House scheme in Cardiff.
How did your support provider help you?
They help me massively. With my mental health problems, I always feel like people have looked down on me, but here there are people who listen, who I am able to talk to.
I have a roof over my head and people to show me the steps and give me the tools to get through my illness.
What did you find most valuable about your support provider?
Having people who listen and who are always there if I need to talk.
Where would you be now if it wasn’t for your support provider?
Probably 6 feet under or in hospital due to the drink or my mental health.
What are your hopes and aspirations for the future?
To get better, and to one day move on and hopefully help people in my position and to be able to tell them there’s light at the end of the tunnel because there IS hope.
What were the circumstances which led to you needing your support provider?
I was homeless following the breakdown of a relationship and I was abusing alcohol and drugs. I didn’t take my medication and my mental health deteriorated which resulted in me being admitted to hospital following a suicide attempt
Which organisation/support provider helped you?
Solas' Dyfrig House scheme in Cardiff.
How did your support provider help you?
They help me massively. With my mental health problems, I always feel like people have looked down on me, but here there are people who listen, who I am able to talk to.
I have a roof over my head and people to show me the steps and give me the tools to get through my illness.
What did you find most valuable about your support provider?
Having people who listen and who are always there if I need to talk.
Where would you be now if it wasn’t for your support provider?
Probably 6 feet under or in hospital due to the drink or my mental health.
What are your hopes and aspirations for the future?
To get better, and to one day move on and hopefully help people in my position and to be able to tell them there’s light at the end of the tunnel because there IS hope.
Friday, 23 October 2015
Digital Co-operative Housing in Wales
Further to the One Big Housing Conference 2015 in Llandrindod Wells where the Wales Co-operative Centre exhibited and Dave Brown, our Director of Communities and Inclusion, ran a session on ‘Meeting the Skills Gap’, I’m ‘Identifying the Opportunity within a Challenge’ by demonstrating the use of digital inclusion within co-operative housing across Wales.
The Centre has been supporting the development of co-operative housing across Wales for three years which has grown from eight ‘pioneers’ to nearly thirty schemes. Forty-one of these social rented homes are now occupied in Cardiff, where the Home Farm Village housing co-operative members communicate through a closed Facebook site and photos are tweeted by Cadwyn HA, who helped develop the scheme. Some of the residents hadn’t used social media before so being part of the group, and with the support of other co-operative members, their participation and skills have increased which demonstrates the power of formal and informal volunteering. They now resolve issues and keep each other informed about suppliers, service providers, refuse collection and anti-social behaviour, through Facebook.
The Wales Co-operative Centre also has a strong track record in the area of digital inclusion. It is currently delivering the Digital Communities Wales project for Welsh Government. The Centre has been helping communities get online since 2005 and was the lead delivery partner of the Welsh Government’s Communities@One and Communities 2.0 projects, both funded by the European Union. The Centre has extensive experience of developing and implementing co-operative solutions to strengthen communities and promote inclusion.
Recent statistics show that 56% of social housing tenants have broadband access compared to 78% of the total population. The aim is for 100% of co-operative residents to be digitally included. One way in which this is being achieved is by tenants using social media, as a platform that brings people together.
In Merthyr Tydfil, ‘Taf Fechan’ Housing co-op has recently set up a Facebook page and website. They have free wi-fi in all flats and hope to carry out most of their training and business electronically. They also tweet - @Taffechancoop.
There are other good examples of this all over Wales. In Newport, where nineteen leasehold shared-ownership homes are currently being built, members communicate through a closed Facebook site and also have a public page. There will be opportunities in future to market available properties through social media.
In Carmarthenshire, founder members of a site that has twenty-seven ‘Intermediate Rent’ homes also have a closed and public Facebook page. Members have chosen the co-op’s logo, street names and internal finishes for the homes through the Facebook page. Training presentations are uploaded to the Facebook site for members that can’t make any of the regular meetings. An emerging group in Powys uses Facebook as they start to engender interest.
Further North, in Wrexham, a small self-build housing co-op has both a website and Facebook site. They have gone public online with the website and have already accumulated over 300 likes on Facebook. They are getting some great messages of support from local community and from those already working on sustainable projects.
There is a large Community Land Trust in Pembrokeshire, which is establishing a website that links into the local community council’s website. In Swansea there is a small established housing co-op that also has a Facebook presence.
All of this not only shows the power of social media, but it provides a great opportunity to help people do more online as they develop housing co-operatives – a win-win as far as we’re concerned. The development and interconnection of all these co-ops across would not be possible without social media and the support of the Wales Co-operative Centre and the Confederation of Co-operative Housing.
Dave Palmer, Wales Co-operative Centre
Wednesday, 14 October 2015
A case study - PORTH Supporting People Service
PORTH is a Supporting People service provided by Tai Ceredigion for elderly and vulnerable people through the county.
The service is provided in our Sheltered Schemes and any individual from the community can access the service by arranging an appointment and visiting a scheme which is most convenient to them. Referrals for support can be made by statutory or voluntary services, or by self referral. The advisors can talk through each concern and then work with each person to achieve the desired goals.
The scheme can help with benefit enquiries, financial matters, mobility issues, housing issues and general help with accessing social support and services.
Our client, 'Mrs Neighbour' was referred to the PORTH service from a partner agency with concerns for escalating rent arrears.
The initial assessment identified many areas of need including mounting debts, high rent arrears and potential homelessness, inappropriate and damp private rented accommodation, failing physical health, mental health issues and the inability to manage life on a day to day basis.
PORTH worked with Mrs Neighbour to understand what the personal goals and priorities were and then liaised with specialist agencies where necessary. Negotiations were made with her current landlord to buy time to try and reduce the rent arrears, medical information was supplied and the Environmental agency accessed to maximise the award of points for the housing register to try to move client Mrs Neighbour into more affordable and sustainable social housing.
This was successful, and 'Mrs Neighbour' was able to move into sheltered accommodation some months later and so avoiding certain homelessness.
PORTH supported Mrs Neighbour to successfully:
By offering support and guidance, the service assisted with many aspects of Mrs Neighbour's life. It was noted that there was a marked improvement in their mental health, general wellbeing and the ability to sustain an independent life in suitable accommodation.
The service is provided in our Sheltered Schemes and any individual from the community can access the service by arranging an appointment and visiting a scheme which is most convenient to them. Referrals for support can be made by statutory or voluntary services, or by self referral. The advisors can talk through each concern and then work with each person to achieve the desired goals.
The scheme can help with benefit enquiries, financial matters, mobility issues, housing issues and general help with accessing social support and services.
Our client, 'Mrs Neighbour' was referred to the PORTH service from a partner agency with concerns for escalating rent arrears.
The initial assessment identified many areas of need including mounting debts, high rent arrears and potential homelessness, inappropriate and damp private rented accommodation, failing physical health, mental health issues and the inability to manage life on a day to day basis.
PORTH worked with Mrs Neighbour to understand what the personal goals and priorities were and then liaised with specialist agencies where necessary. Negotiations were made with her current landlord to buy time to try and reduce the rent arrears, medical information was supplied and the Environmental agency accessed to maximise the award of points for the housing register to try to move client Mrs Neighbour into more affordable and sustainable social housing.
This was successful, and 'Mrs Neighbour' was able to move into sheltered accommodation some months later and so avoiding certain homelessness.
PORTH supported Mrs Neighbour to successfully:
- Apply for ESA & SDP, PIP and DHP.
- Also to declare bankruptcy (via a CAB financial specialist)
- To obtain a grant of £700 towards rent arrears
- To manage medication through liaison with the GP and chemist
- To attend relevant medical appointments
- To set up utility accounts
- To open a suitable bank account for direct debits.
Buddug
Lewis
Tai
Ceredigion Housing Manager
By offering support and guidance, the service assisted with many aspects of Mrs Neighbour's life. It was noted that there was a marked improvement in their mental health, general wellbeing and the ability to sustain an independent life in suitable accommodation.
Tuesday, 13 October 2015
One Big Housing Conference #chchousing15
Brett Sadler, Assistant Director of Neighbourhoods at North Wales Housing, blogged about our recent One Big Housing Conference...
First a bit of background. CHC are the representative body for housing associations and community mutuals in Wales, which are all not-for profit organisations. The venue for the event is the famous Metropole Hotel (trust me – if you have been there, you’d understand why its famous). It’s a sprawling hotel in Llandrindod Wells, often jokingly described in Wales as ‘equally inconvenient for the North and South’. For me personally it was a 2½ hour drive from North Wales to get there – fact. It’s also the only hotel I know where there is no mobile signal within the hotel…..anywhere.
And so to the conference itself. If you have never been to a CHC event before, they are very professionally run. Everything electronic (rather than the usual half a ream of papers given at the start of a conference), screens with the latest tweets up on the wall and clearly signposted rooms for each session.
The first conference session was from Andy Crowe titled ‘I’m a Housing Exec, GET ME OUT OF HERE!’, talking about his experience of working on the island of St Helena and the uphill struggles this entailed, although as I tweeted below, its not all work...
To read more, please visit Brett's blog to read his original post.
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