Acting Digital Unite MD, Dick Stroud, says the lack of internet access in care homes needs to change.
The recent internet access figures from carehome.co.uk make stark reading. Only a fifth of care home residents across the country have access to the internet. That is just 3,400 out of the 20,000 homes across the country. If we err on the side of caution and assume that each home has just 15 residents – that means for a quarter of a million people internet access is out of reach. This astonishing statistic is another reason why the number of older people not using the Internet remains stubbornly high – as we discussed in our recent blog post on the quarterly internet access figures. Over the years Digital Unite has worked hand-in-hand with housing providers to deliver bespoke and sustainable digital inclusion programmes and as these latest figures show there is still much to be done. So is it a case of providing communal computers and internet access in sheltered housing and care homes? Well, that’s just part of the story. The real success of an initiative to get residents online, is driven by confidence and encouragement. Firstly, the confidence of the housing organisation or care home to recognise how increasingly important getting online is, to access financial services, benefits applications and even library services. And how valuable and uplifting it can be for residents to access new ways to communicate with family and friends. Secondly, residents themselves need to be inspired and encouraged by digital champions within their communities. People who can reassure, advise and help residents feel confident and excited about the possibilities. For a care home or sheltered housing programme to work, it needs the Digital Champion to ensure the online habit become a permanent feature of older person’s life. We totally support the director of carehome.co.uk, who said: “We would like to see more care homes giving residents access to the internet. ICT should be an integral part of life in a care home.” But, ensuring computing equipment is available is only 50% of the solution. We know from years of experience that the ability for older people to access the Internet is only as good as the expertise that is available to help and encourage its use. This is why we are doing all we can to make it easier for people to become digital champions to help others experience the fun and value of being online. We have some exciting new developments that we will be announcing about how we are supporting the creation of an army of digital champions to help those people in social housing - watch this space! This report make me think we should redouble our efforts to help those working in the care industry to help their residents.